ADC-NiCE member, Trevor Hamilton, and his lab members  were enthusiastic to attend and present at this year’s Canadian Association for Neuroscience Annual Meeting in Toronto.   

This meeting offered an excellent platform for the neuroscience research community to connect, share ideas, and engage with leaders in the field. A highlight for our center was the opportunity for Andréa Johnson, a doctoral candidate in the Hamilton lab, to present her research, which characterizes longitudinal patterns of stability and variability in anxiety-like behaviors across individual zebrafish and assessed whether distinct behavioral profiles emerge over time.

Using a modified novel tank dive test, this study tracked anxiety-related behaviors in adult zebrafish across three time points (90, 120, and 150 days post-fertilization). behavioral metrics, including time spent in different tank zones, swimming velocity, and immobility, were analyzed for age- and sex-related effects, repeatability, and within-individual variation. Results indicated significant changes in anxiety-like behaviors with age, with fish spending more time in the upper zone and displaying increased swimming velocity over time. 

While no significant sex differences were observed in general anxiety measures, males exhibited greater within-individual variability in locomotor activity, while females demonstrated higher repeatability in time spent in the lower zone. Furthermore, zebrafish were classified into high, medium, and low-anxiety groups based on cumulative behavioral scores, revealing stable individual differences in anxiety-like behaviors over time.

Many thanks to the organizers!