Transcriptional responses of the zebrafish (Danio rerio) brain to acute sodium selenite supplementation.. Danio rerio

The possible benefits of selenium (Se) supplementation are currently under investigation for prevention of certain cancers and treatment of neurological disorders. Little is known concerning the response of the brain to increased dietary Se under conditions of Se sufficiency, despite the majority of Se supplementation trials occurring in healthy subjects considered Se sufficient. We evaluated the transcriptional response of the zebrafish (Danio rerio) brain to supplementation with nutritionally relevant levels of dietary Se (sodium selenite) during conditions of assumed Se sufficiency. We used a microarray approach to analyze the global gene expression response of the brain to dietary Se supplementation for 14 days. Overall design: The experiment used Affymetrix microarrays to compare whole brain RNA from 8 adult zebrafish (Danio rerio) fed a diet with control selenium levels (1.4ppmSe) and 8 fed a diet supplemented with sodium selenite (5.6ppmSe) for 14 days, and with an equal sex ratio within each diet.