Home › Neuroscience › Raising the Mexican Tetra Astyanax mexicanus for Analysis of Post-larval Phenotypes and Whole-mount Immunohistochemistry
Neuroscience JoVE (Open Access) Citable · DOI

Raising the Mexican Tetra Astyanax mexicanus for Analysis of Post-larval Phenotypes and Whole-mount Immunohistochemistry

DOI: 10.3791/58972-v
What you'll learn
  • ✓ Breed Astyanax mexicanus adults and manage larval development through post-larval stages
  • ✓ Perform whole-mount immunohistochemistry on post-larval fish for phenotypic analysis
  • ✓ Compare morphological and developmental differences between surface and cave-dwelling fish morphotypes
Protocol

In this protocol, we demonstrate how to breed Astyanax mexicanus adults, raise the larvae, and perform whole-mount immunohistochemistry on post-larval fish to compare the phenotypes of surface and cave morphotypes.

Difficulty
intermediate
Total time
~4–6 weeks (from breeding to post-larval analysis)
Model organism
Astyanax mexicanus (Mexican tetra fish)

Steps

1
Breed Astyanax mexicanus adult fish

Set up breeding conditions for adult surface and cave morphotypes. Monitor for spawning and collect fertilized eggs.

▶ 00:38
2
Incubate and hatch fertilized eggs

Maintain optimal water conditions for egg development and monitor for larval hatching over several days.

▶ 01:20
3
Transfer hatched larvae to nursery containers

Gently transfer newly hatched larvae to appropriate nursery tanks with controlled environment conditions.

▶ 02:16
4
Prepare rotifer food and feed post-larval fish

Culture and prepare rotifer-based live food, then establish a regular feeding schedule for developing post-larval fish.

▶ 02:45
5
Perform whole-mount immunohistochemistry on post-larvae

Fix, permeabilize, and immunostain post-larval fish tissue to visualize phenotypic differences between surface and cave morphotypes.

▶ 03:19
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