title: In Vivo Imaging of Cancer in Zebrafish.
abstract: Zebrafish cancer models have greatly advanced our understanding of malignancy in humans. This is made possible due to the unique advantages of the zebrafish model including ex vivo development and large clutch sizes, which enable large-scale genetic and chemical screens. Transparency of the embryo and the creation of adult zebrafish devoid of pigmentation (casper) have permitted unprecedented ability to dynamically visualize cancer progression in live animals. When coupled with fluorescent reporters and transgenic approaches that drive oncogenesis, it is now possible to label entire or subpopulations of cancer cells and follow cancer growth in near real-time. Here, we will highlight aspects of in vivo imaging using the zebrafish and how it has enhanced our understanding of the fundamental aspects of tumor initiation, self-renewal, neovascularization, tumor cell heterogeneity, invasion and metastasis. Importantly, we will highlight the contribution of cancer imaging in zebrafish for drug discovery.
authors.affiliation: Molecular Pathology Unit, Department of Pathology, Massachusetts General Hospital, 149 13th Street, #6012, Charlestown, MA, 02129, USA.|Center of Cancer Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, 02129, USA.|Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Boston, MA, 02129, USA.
authors.forename: Myron S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Ignatius
authors.affiliation: Molecular Pathology Unit, Department of Pathology, Massachusetts General Hospital, 149 13th Street, #6012, Charlestown, MA, 02129, USA.|Center of Cancer Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, 02129, USA.|Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Boston, MA, 02129, USA.
authors.forename: Madeline
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hayes
authors.affiliation: Molecular Pathology Unit, Department of Pathology, Massachusetts General Hospital, 149 13th Street, #6012, Charlestown, MA, 02129, USA. dlangenau@mgh.harvard.edu.|Center of Cancer Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, 02129, USA. dlangenau@mgh.harvard.edu.|Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Boston, MA, 02129, USA. dlangenau@mgh.harvard.edu.
authors.forename: David M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Langenau
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D030801:Animals, Genetically Modified; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D018450:Disease Progression; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000098:blood supply / Q000473:pathology*; D014411:Neoplastic Stem Cells / Q000473:pathology; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic; D015027:Zebrafish / Q000196:embryology
keywords: Cancer; Cancer stem cells; Imaging; Self-renewal; Zebrafish