Zebrafish neuro-behavioral profiles altered by acesulfame (ACE) within the range of “no observed effect concentrations (NOECs)”

Recently, artificial sweeteners have received widespread attention as the emerging environmental pollutants, among which, acesulfame (ACE) is ubiquitously present and extremely persistent in the ecosystem. Although the environmental behavior of ACE has already been well studied, its chronic eco-toxicological effects on aquatic organisms are rarely reported. Thus, more researches should be performed to determine the concentration which exerted the observable toxicological effect. Herein, we examined neuro-behavioral effects of ACE at 1, 10 and 100 mg/L on adult zebrafish via performing the behavioral test batteries including light/dark preference test, novel tank diving test, novel object exploration test, social preference test and colour-enhanced CPP test. In addition, in order to fully phenotype the behavioral alteration induced by ACE, we applied the techniques deriving from behavioral phenomics to analyze and interpret the big data from a large number of behavioral variables. Furthermore, the alterations of neurotransmitter in brain were also assayed to confirm the behavioral results. We found that ACE within the concentration range of No Observed Effect Concentrations (NOECs) had remarkably altered the neuro-behavioral profiles: altered the preference for light/dark, reduced the exploration ability of zebrafish in the novel tank and novel object exploration test, affected the group preference of zebrafish, changed the colour preference, learning and memory ability of zebrafish and disturbed the quantitative patterns of neurotransmitter in brain. As a result, this research can offer a reference for readjusting the NOECs of ACE and assessing neurotoxicity of artificial sweeteners.