Oxytocin Enhances Time-Dependent Responses in the Aggressive Zebrafish (Danio rerio)

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has become one of the most well-known disorders encountered since early childhood among people. Nowadays, the main concerns are its high prevalence and the lack of proper therapeutic interventions. In this way, the necessity of using animal models that can mimic some of the spectrum symptoms, besides deepening the mechanisms of occurrence, is undeniable. Oxytocin (OT) is often mentioned and linked to producing social domain improvements. The goal of the present study was to determine if different time exposures to OT can trigger distinct behavioral responses in zebrafish, potentially offering insights into autism therapy. To accomplish this goal, zebrafish were exposed to the same dose of OT (33.2 ng/mL OT) for one week but with different time frames, such as: continuous exposure for seven days, fifteen minutes per day for seven days, and every two days for the same amount of time. The behavior of the fish was recorded using the EthoVision XT 11.5 software, and each trial lasted four minutes. Specific parameters for locomotor activity and aggressive behavior were measured. Overall, zebrafish exposure to OT generated several improvements in locomotor activity and aggressive behavior. Moreover, the differences in the exposure period indicated that time is an important factor, showing that continuous exposure to OT was linked with better performance than exposure to the hormone every two days. At the same time, the most variable results were observed in the case of fish exposed every day to OT. Exposure to OT could lead to certain improvements in zebrafish behavior that can be time-sensitive. Nevertheless, further work is needed in order to investigate the mechanisms of action of OT in an ASD context.