Title:The Use of the Zebrafish Model to Aid in Drug Discovery and Target Validation
Volume: 17
Issue: 18
Author(s): Prusothman Yoganantharjah and Yann Gibert*
Affiliation:
- Metabolic Research Unit, Metabolic Genetic Diseases Laboratory, Deakin University School of Medicine, 75 Pigdons Road, Geelong VIC 3216,Australia
Keywords:
Zebrafish, Drug, Screening, Drug discovery, In vivo model, ADME.
Abstract: The zebrafish is fast becoming a leading and prominent model organism used by researchers
for developmental biology, and research in modeling human diseases in zebrafish is being undertaken at
a fast pace. Many therapeutic areas, including oncology and cardiovascular diseases to name a few all
have zebrafish models based on known disease mechanisms that are translatable to modes of action in
humans. Many novel assays have been and are continuing to be developed to study human disease in
zebrafish. Prominent methods to identify novel drug targets within the organism include, chemical
mutagenesis, insertional mutagenesis and high throughput small molecule screens. Methods to validate
potential drug targets include reverse and forward genetics, transgenesis and gene knockout. This review
summarizes the important contributions made using the zebrafish model in recent years to aid in drug
discovery and target validations in the highly important medical field of cancer medicine, cardiovascular
disease and the emerging role of the zebrafish model as a platform for toxicity screening.
