Physiological properties of zebrafish embryonic red and white muscle fibers during early development

The zebrafish is a model organism for studies of vertebrate muscle differentiation and development. However, an understanding of fish muscle physiology during this period is limited. We examined the membrane, contractile, electrical coupling, and synaptic properties of embryonic red (ER) and white (EW) muscle fibers in developing zebrafish from 1 to 5 days postfertilization. Resting membrane potentials were -73 mV in 1 day ER and -78 mV in 1 day EW muscle and depolarized 17 and 7 mV, respectively, by 5 days. Neither fiber type exhibited action potentials. Current-voltage relationships were linear in EW fibers and day 1 ER fibers but were outwardly rectifying in some ER fibers at 3 to 5 days. Both ER and EW fibers were contractile at all ages examined (1 to 5 days) and could follow trains of electrical stimulation of up to 30 Hz without fatiguing for up to 5 min. Synaptic activity consisting of miniature endplate potentials (mEPPs) was observed at the earliest ages examined (1.2-1.4 days) in both ER and EW fibers. Synaptic activity increased in frequency, and mEPP amplitudes were larger by 5 days. Miniature EPP rise times and half-widths decreased in ER fibers by 5 days, while EW fiber mEPPs showed fast kinetics as early as 1.2-1.4 days. ER and EW muscle fibers showed extensive dye coupling but not heterologous (red-white) coupling. Dye coupling decreased by 3 days yet remained at 5 days. Somites were electrically coupling, and this allowed filtered synaptic potentials to spread from myotome to myotome. It is concluded that at early developmental stages the physiological properties of ER and EW muscle are similar but not identical and are optimized to the patterns of swimming observed at these stages.