Life Span Assessment in the African Turquoise Killifish Nothobranchius furzeri

Abstract

The African turquoise killifish (Nothobranchius furzeri) is the shortest-lived vertebrate bred in captivity, with a median life span of 4–6 mo. Within its short life span, the killifish recapitulates critical aspects of human aging, including neurodegeneration and increased frailty. Developing standardized protocols for life span assessment in killifish is critical for identifying environmental and genetic factors that impact vertebrate life span. A standardized life span protocol should have low variability and high reproducibility, and it should enable comparison of life spans between laboratories. Here, we report our standardized protocol for measuring life span in the African turquoise killifish.