First quantitative high-throughput screen in zebrafish identifies novel pathways for increasing pancreatic β-cell mass

Abstract

Whole-organism chemical screening can circumvent bottlenecks that impede drug discovery. However, in vivo screens have not attained throughput capacities possible with in vitro assays. We therefore developed a method enabling in vivo high-throughput screening (HTS) in zebrafish, termed automated reporter quantification in vivo (ARQiv). In this study, ARQiv was combined with robotics to fully actualize whole-organism HTS (ARQiv-HTS). In a primary screen, this platform quantified cell-specific fluorescent reporters in >500,000 transgenic zebrafish larvae to identify FDA-approved (Federal Drug Administration) drugs that increased the number of insulin-producing β cells in the pancreas. 24 drugs were confirmed as inducers of endocrine differentiation and/or stimulators of β-cell proliferation. Further, we discovered novel roles for NF-κB signaling in regulating endocrine differentiation and for serotonergic signaling in selectively stimulating β-cell proliferation. These studies demonstrate the power of ARQiv-HTS for drug discovery and provide unique insights into signaling pathways controlling β-cell mass, potential therapeutic targets for treating diabetes.Type 1 diabetes is caused by the body incorrectly destroying the cells in the pancreas—known as β cells—that produce insulin and so control the amount of sugar found in the bloodstream. Drugs that increase the rate at which new β cells form could therefore help to treat this disease.High-throughput screening is a technique that uses automated systems to rapidly test the effects of large numbers of drug-like compounds on living cells. Unfortunately, drugs sometimes produce different effects in animals than those they produce in isolated cells or other more simplified screening systems.Zebrafish are often used in biological studies because the larvae are transparent, making it easier to study what goes on inside them. Wang et al. have now developed a high-throughput screening system that uses genetically engineered zebrafish. The zebrafish contain ‘reporter’ genes that fluoresce when a gene is activated, and the intensity of the fluorescence can be interpreted to work out the effects of an applied drug.To search for compounds that cause β cells to grow, Wang et al. created two reporter genes: one that glows yellow when new β cells form, and one that glows red when other pancreatic cells are stimulated. An initial screen tested the effects of over 3000 drugs, most of which have been approved for use in humans. This screen identified and confirmed 24 drugs that trigger the growth of new β cells or other pancreatic cells in zebrafish larvae. Further investigation uncovered new roles for two signaling pathways that had not previously been linked to pancreatic growth. One pathway—the serotonin pathway, which is better known for transmitting signals in the brain—selectively stimulates the growth of new β cells.The work of Wang et al. therefore presents a number of possible drugs and pathways that could be targeted in the search for a new treatment for type 1 diabetes. Furthermore, this new whole-organism, high-throughput screening system could be used in the future to search for drugs that affect a range of other biological processes.