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How to Dechorionate a Zebrafish Embryo

 

C:\Users\Kelsey\Pictures\Zebrafish\10103134.JPG

 

 

 

 

Step 1.  Obtain a zebrafish embryo with a chorion, as pictured above.  The chorion is the membrane that exists around the developing embryo.


C:\Users\Kelsey\Pictures\Zebrafish\10103626.JPG
 

 

 

 

 

C:\Users\Kelsey\Pictures\Zebrafish\10103643.JPG

 

 

 

 

 

Step 2. Carefully grab the chorion of the embryo with a pair of fine-tip tweezers, without disrupting the embryo itself.

Step 3.  Grab the other end of the chorion with a second pair of fine-tip tweezers.

 

C:\Users\Kelsey\Pictures\Zebrafish\10105034.JPG

Step 4.  Gently pull the tweezers in opposing directions. For blastula stage embryos, be very careful not to let the chorion touch the embryo, as this will disrupt the cells and kill the
embryos.


C:\Users\Kelsey\Pictures\Zebrafish\10105052.JPG

The resulting product is a zebrafish embryo free of its chorion.  Dechorionation helps to better observe the embryo under a microscope, making the embryo easier to accurately stage.  
It is also necessary for some techniques, such as cell transplantation.