Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) 9 articles published in JoVE Biology Sperm Collection and Computer-Assisted Sperm Analysis in the Teleost Model Japanese Medaka (Oryzias latipes) Lauren Closs1, Amin Sayyari2, Romain Fontaine1 1Department of Preclinical Sciences and Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, 2Department of Production Animal Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences This article describes two quick and efficient methods for collecting sperm from the small model fish medaka (Oryzias latipes), as well as a protocol for reliably assessing sperm quality using computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA). Biology Gonadectomy and Blood Sampling Procedures in the Small Size Teleost Model Japanese Medaka (Oryzias latipes) Muhammad Rahmad Royan1, Shinji Kanda2, Daichi Kayo3, Weiyi Song4, Wei Ge4, Finn-Arne Weltzien1, Romain Fontaine1 1Physiology Unit, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, 2Laboratory of Physiology, Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, 3Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, 4Centre of Reproduction, Development and Aging (CRDA), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau The article describes a quick protocol to gonadectomize and sample blood from the small teleost fish, using Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes) as a model, to investigate the role of sex steroids in animal physiology. Bioengineering Labeling of Blood Vessels in the Teleost Brain and Pituitary Using Cardiac Perfusion with a DiI-fixative Romain Fontaine1, Finn-Arne Weltzien1 1Department of Basic Sciences and Aquatic Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences The article describes a quick protocol for labeling blood vessels in a teleost fish by cardiac perfusion of DiI diluted in fixative, using medaka (Oryzias latipes) as a model and focusing on brain and pituitary tissue. Neuroscience Preparation of a High-quality Primary Cell Culture from Fish Pituitaries Eirill Ager-Wick1, Kjetil Hodne1, Romain Fontaine1, Kristine von Krogh1, Trude M. Haug2, Finn-Arne Weltzien1 1Department of Basic Sciences and Aquatic Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, 2Department of Oral Biology, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Oslo Here we describe a protocol to prepare and maintain primary pituitary cell cultures from medaka (Oryzias latipes). The optimized conditions in this protocol take important parameters such as temperature, osmolality, and pH into consideration by mimicking the physiological conditions of the fish, thereby enabling physiologically more meaningful results. Neuroscience Healthy Brain-pituitary Slices for Electrophysiological Investigations of Pituitary Cells in Teleost Fish Romain Fontaine*1, Kjetil Hodne*1, Finn-Arne Weltzien1 1Department of Basic Sciences and Aquatic Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences The article describes an optimized protocol for making viable brain-pituitary tissue slices, using the teleost fish medaka (Oryzias latipes), followed by electrophysiological recordings of pituitary cells using the patch-clamp technique with the perforated patch configuration. Behavior Tickling, a Technique for Inducing Positive Affect When Handling Rats Sylvie Cloutier1,2, Megan R. LaFollette3, Brianna N. Gaskill3, Jaak Panksepp1, Ruth C. Newberry4 1Center for the Study of Animal Well-being, Department of Integrative Physiology and Neuroscience, Washington State University, 2Canadian Council on Animal Care, 3Department of Animal Sciences, Center for Animal Welfare Science, College of Agriculture, Purdue University, 4Department of Animal and Aquacultural Sciences, Faculty of Biosciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences This article demonstrates the standardized application of playful handling, a tickling technique designed to mimic rat rough-and-tumble play. This technique is effective at reducing fearful reactions to humans and generating positive affect when rats are handled for common husbandry activities and medical and research procedures such as injection. Biology A Method to Assess Bacteriocin Effects on the Gut Microbiota of Mice Chrstine Bäuerl*1, Özgun C.O. Umu*2, Pablo E. Hernandez3, Dzung B. Diep4, Gaspar Pérez-Martínez1 1Departamento de Biotecnología, Instituto de Agroquímica y Tecnología de Alimentos (IATA), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), 2Department of Food Safety and Infection Biology, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), 3Departamento de Nutrición, Bromatología y Tecnología de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), 4Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) Bacteriocins are believed to play a key role in defining microbial diversity in different ecological niches. Here, we describe an efficient procedure to assess how bacteriocins affect gut microbiota composition in an animal model. Biology Obtaining Specimens with Slowed, Accelerated and Reversed Aging in the Honey Bee Model Daniel Münch1, Nicholas Baker2, Erik M.K. Rasmussen1, Ashish K. Shah1, Claus D. Kreibich1, Lars E. Heidem1, Gro V. Amdam1,2 1Department of Chemistry, Biotechnology and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, 2School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University In honey bee workers, aging depends on social behaviors rather than on chronological age. Here we show how worker-types with very different aging patterns can be obtained and analyzed for cellular senescence. Neuroscience RNAi-mediated Double Gene Knockdown and Gustatory Perception Measurement in Honey Bees (Apis mellifera) Ying Wang1, Nicholas Baker1, Gro V. Amdam1,2 1School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, 2Department of Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Food Science, Norwegian University of Life Sciences In this protocol, we describe two strategies that simultaneously suppress two genes (double gene knockdown) in honey bees. Then we present how to use the proboscis extension response (PER) assay to study the effect of double gene knockdown on honey bee gustatory perception.