Figure 4
From: The α1-adrenoceptor inhibitor ρ-TIA facilitates net hunting in piscivorous Conus tulipa
Simulation of the nirvana cabal on zebrafish larvae. The prey capture environment was simulated on the zebrafish larvae using mixtures of the nirvana peptides. Equimolar concentrations (1 μM) of synthetic conantokins and conopressins from (A) C. geographus and (B) C. tulipa were applied to the zebrafish larvae to observe for effects on their sensory capabilities. In both experiments, co-addition of conopressins and conantokins did not induce any synergistic effect on the escape response of the larvae, whereas a reduction in the larval flight response was observed when 1 μM ρ-TIA was added to the mixture (simulated Geo/Tulipa cabal). The simulated cabal from C. geographus peptides produced an average escape response score of 3.06, while the C. tulipa peptides produced an average escape response score of 4.07. In both experimental conditions, this observed effect was parallel to that elicited by single addition of 1 μM ρ-TIA (black solid bar), thus demonstrating that the hypothesised nirvana peptides do not affect the sensory capabilities of larval zebrafish. Single additions of the conopressins, conantokins and E3 (negative control) were ineffective on larval escape behaviour. Data is expressed as ± SEM and is the mean of values obtained from five independent experiments, each consisting of ten individual touch-evoked scores.
