Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40617472›Full record

ArticleDevelopmental biology2025

Effects of age on the response to spinal cord injury: optimizing the larval zebrafish model.

Whitney J Walker, Kirsten L Underwood, Patrick I Garrett, Kathryn B Lorbacher, Shannon M Linch, Thomas P Rynes, Chloe Sloop, Karen Mruk

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Developmental biology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Whitney J WalkerSchool of Pharmacy, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, USA; Zoology and Physiology Graduate Program, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, USA.
Kirsten L UnderwoodSchool of Pharmacy, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, USA.
Patrick I GarrettDepartment of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, USA.
Kathryn B LorbacherDepartment of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, USA.
Shannon M LinchSchool of Pharmacy, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, USA.
Thomas P RynesDepartment of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, USA.
Chloe SloopDepartment of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, USA.
Karen MrukSchool of Pharmacy, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, USA; Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, USA. Electronic address: mrukk23@ecu.edu.

Funding

Zebrafish Models of CNS Injury and Locomotor RecoveryP20GM121310 · NIGMS · UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING · PI Qian-Quan Sun · 2017 to 2026
$27.2M
Elucidating the role of kcnn1 in recovery from spinal cord injuryR03NS136719 · NINDS · EAST CAROLINA UNIVERSITY · PI MRUK, KAREN · 2024 to 2025
$151k
NIGMS NIH HHS P20 GM121310NINDS NIH HHS R03 NS136719
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Zebrafish are an increasingly popular model to study regeneration after spinal cord injury (SCI). The transparency of larval zebrafish makes them ideal to study cellular processes in real time. Standardized approaches, including age at the time of injury, are not readily available making comparisons of the results with other models challenging. In this study, we systematically examined the response to spinal cord transection of larval zebrafish at three different larval ages (3-, 5-, or 7-days post fertilization (dpf)) to determine whether the developmental complexity of the larvae affects the overall response to SCI. We then used imaging and behavioral analysis to evaluate whether differences existed based on the age of injury. Injury led to increased expression of cytokines associated with the immune response; however, we found that the timing of specific inflammatory markers changed with the age of the injury. We also observed changes in glial and axonal bridging with age. Young larvae (3 dpf) were better able to regenerate axons independent of the glial bridge, unlike older larvae (7 dpf), consistent with results seen in adult zebrafish. Finally, locomotor experiments demonstrated that some swimming behavior occurs independent of glial bridge formation, further highlighting the need for standardization of this model and functional recovery assays. Overall, we found differences based on the age of transection in larval zebrafish, underlining the importance of considering age when designing experiments aimed at understanding regeneration.

Indexed as

Spinal Cord InjuriesZebrafishAge FactorsAnimalsAxonsCytokinesDisease Models, AnimalLarvaNerve RegenerationNeurogliaSpinal CordCytokinesDevelopmentFunctional recoverySpinal cord transection

Identifiers

PMID40617472
PMCPMC12323442

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.