Conventional Test Method:

Fish Acute Toxicity (OECD TG 203)

Alternative Test Method:

Name & Description:

Fish Embryo Toxicity (FET) Test

Newly fertilized zebrafish eggs (or certain other species) are exposed to a chemical for up to 48 hours and lethality to the embryos is evaluated after 24, and if required, and 48 hours.

Validation Status:

OECD: Validated

Regulatory Status:

OECD: TG 236 (2013)

Effect or Potential Effect on Animal Use:

Replacement
(relative replacement meaning replacing more sentient animals with animals that current scientific peer advice and interpretation of scientific evidence indicate have a lower potential for pain perception)

References:

• Braunbeck T. and Lammer E. (2006) Background paper on Fish Embryo Toxicity Assays. German Federal Environment Agency.
• Braunbeck T., Böttcher M., Hollert H., Kosmehl T., Lammer E., Leist E., Rudolf M. and Seitz N. (2005) Towards an alternative for the acute fish LC50 test in chemical assessment: The fish embryo toxicity test goes multi-species - an update. ALTEX 22(2):87-102.
• Embry M.R., Belanger S.E., Braunbeck T.A., Galay-Burgos M., Halder M., Hinton D.E., Leonard M.A., Lillicrap A., Norberg-King T. and Wahle G. (2010). The fish embryo toxicity test as an animal alternative method in hazard and risk assessment and scientific research. Aquatic Toxicology 97(2):79-87.
• Lammer E., Carr G.J., Wendler K., Rawlings J.M., Belanger S.E. and Braunbeck T. (2009) Is the fish embryo toxicity test (FET) with the zebrafish (Danio rerio) a potential alternative for the fish acute toxicity test? Comparative Biochemistry & Physiology 149(2):196-209.
• OECD (2013) Test No. 236: Fish Embryo Acute Toxicity (FET) Test, OECD Guidelines for the Testing of Chemicals, Section 2

Information Last Reviewed:

June 2014