Evaluation of the annual killifish Nothobranchius guentheri as a tool for rapid acute toxicity screening.

This study evaluated the use of Nothobranchius guentheri as a novel organism for rapid acute toxicity screening. A major advantage of the species is that there is no need to maintain a continuous culture to have organisms immediately available for testing. Rather, the embryos are viable under long-term storage conditions and can be hatched within a few hours. The tests require only 24 h with standard laboratory equipment. Sensitivity levels for 11 representative toxicants were comparable to those reported for five of the standard U.S. Environmental Protection Agency test species requiring continuous culture.