Microinjection of DNA, RNA, and Protein into the Fertilized Zebrafish Egg for Analysis of Gene Function

The use of microinjection to study gene function in the zebrafish has become widespread in recent years. This includes ectopic expression of genes by introducing DNA (1 ) or RNA into embryos or injection of blocking molecules, such as RNA encoding truncated proteins (2 ) or antibodies, to perturb the function of endogenouse gene products (3 ,4 ). The method involves microinjection of DNA and RNA molecules into the cytoplasm of one-cell-stage embryos using pressure microinjector and micromanipulator as described below.