Online water flea atlas provides lab researchers unprecedented levels of image capture for studying water fleas
8 Feb 2025
The Daphnia Histology Reference Atlas (DaHRA) provides high resolution pictures of Daphnia with their internal anatomy colour coded to make different tissue identifiable from various angles.
It could prove a useful aid for environmental science and regulation of ‘silent killer’ chemicals; Daphnia are employed as sentinels for pinpointing water pollution.
Their study enables scientists to track its toxic effects on living organisms, revealing the particular organs that are impacted and how harmful chemicals affect specific tissues.
The project is the work of combined research teams from Britain and North America, including the University of Birmingham (UK), Penn State University in the USA and Canada’s Mount Allison University.
Birmingham professor Luisa Orsini commented: “Until now, the impact of chemicals has been measured only at the whole organism level. Being able to measure the toxic effects of chemicals on cells and tissues open new exciting opportunities to predict their adverse effect on living organisms.”
The hope is that the resource will enable scientists to make a connection between impacted tissues and disruption of gene functions.
Dr. Khai C. Ang, assistant professor in Penn State’s department of Pathology, College of Medicine commented:
“The atlas provides researchers with a resource to understand Daphnia’s microanatomy so that scientists can correctly interpret the impacts of environmental pollutants on the organism as an indicator for ensuring environmental health and sustainability.”
The images were cut, scanned and labelled by a team led by first author Dr. Mee Siing Ngu with female and male adult Daphnia magna cut into three anatomical planes.
The open access tool is available for scientists, educators, and policymakers, with labels compliant with standardised anatomical terms.
