evaluating-toxicity-chemicals-using-zebrafish-vibration-startle

Evaluating Toxicity of Chemicals using a Zebrafish Vibration Startle Response Screening System

We developed a simple screening system for the evaluation of neuromuscular and general toxicity in zebrafish embryos. The modular system consists of ...

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology - Campus Nord

The use of active prostheses for the lower extremity is limited by the amount of electric energy stored in batteries. A promising way to extend their usage time is to convert motions generated by the human body during walking to electrical energy. A first functioning prototype was designed to transfer kinetic energy from heel contact and forefoot contact to a generator by using a fluidic system. Experimental results show that walking with the system generates an average electrical power of 0.8 W. The design of the energy scavenging system (ESS) is presented and results are discussed.

Kinetic energy scavenging in a prosthetic foot using a fluidic system.

Patients with inherited dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) often suffer from severe heart failure based on impaired cardiac contractility leading to increased morbidity and mortality. Integrin-linked kinase (ILK) as a part of the cardiac mechanical stretch sensor was found to be an essential genetic regulator of cardiac contractility. Integrin-linked kinase localizes to z-disks and costameres in vertebrate hearts and regulates the activity of the signaling molecule protein kinase B (PKB/Akt) by controlling its phosphorylation. Despite identification of several potential drug targets in the ILK signaling pathway, pharmacological treatment strategies to restore contractile function in ILK-dependent cardiomyopathies have not been established yet. In recent years, the zebrafish has emerged as a valuable experimental system to model human cardiomyopathies as well as a powerful tool for the straightforward high-throughput in vivo small compound screening of therapeutically active substances. Using the ILK deficient zebrafish heart failure mutant  (), which shows reduced PKB phosphorylation and thereby impaired cardiac contractile force, we identified here, in an automated small compound screen, the protein phosphatase inhibitors calyculin A and okadaic acid significantly restoring myocardial contractile function by reconstituting PKB phosphorylation in  ILK-deficient zebrafish embryos.

Therapeutic Chemical Screen Identifies Phosphatase Inhibitors to Reconstitute PKB Phosphorylation and Cardiac Contractility in ILK-Deficient Zebrafish.

Christian Pylatiuk

Institute for Automation and Applied Informatics

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology - Campus Nord

Evaluating Toxicity of Chemicals using a Zebrafish Vibration Startle Response Screening System

Christian Pylatiuk

.css-o250i3{font-size:18px;font-family:Open Sans,sans-serif;line-height:21.6px;}Institute for Automation and Applied Informatics

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology - Campus Nord

Evaluating Toxicity of Chemicals using a Zebrafish Vibration Startle Response Screening System

Institute for Automation and Applied Informatics