{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,22]],"date-time":"2026-09-22T05:03:42Z","timestamp":1790053422068,"version":"4.0.1"},"reference-count":50,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"18","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,19]],"date-time":"2026-09-19T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1789776000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Sapienza University of Rome","award":["RP1251999B4ABABF"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["RP1251999B4ABABF"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/02be6w209","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"crossref"}]},{"name":"Sapienza University of Rome","award":["RD12318A998C70B8"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["RD12318A998C70B8"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/02be6w209","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"crossref"}]},{"award":["RP1251999B4ABABF"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["RP1251999B4ABABF"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/02be6w209","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"award":["RD12318A998C70B8"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["RD12318A998C70B8"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/02be6w209","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Animals"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Temperature is a major environmental factor influencing fish behaviour and physiological function. In the present study, adult zebrafish were exposed to 18 \u00b0C for 21 days and compared with controls maintained at 26 \u00b0C to evaluate the behavioural effects of chronic low-temperature exposure. Behaviour was assessed using four individual-based paradigms\u2014the novel tank diving test, light\u2013dark preference test, social preference test, and mirror biting test\u2014covering locomotion, exploration, social behaviour and anxiety-related responses. Chronic exposure to 18 \u00b0C was associated with a behavioural profile characterised by increased immobility, reduced exploratory activity, enhanced bottom-dwelling, and reduced active engagement with the mirror stimulus, whereas social preference towards conspecifics was largely preserved. Comparison with behavioural responses previously reported after 4 days of exposure to 18 \u00b0C suggests that several behavioural differences are still detectable after 21 days, indicating that the behavioural profile of fish maintained at 18 \u00b0C remained distinct from that of controls within the time window examined. These findings should be interpreted in light of the absence of independent tank-level replication. Previous studies conducted under comparable thermal conditions have reported molecular changes in the brain and in other neural-derived structures, such as the eye. Although these molecular findings were not generated in the present experiment and cannot be directly linked to individual behavioural endpoints, they provide a broader context for interpreting the behavioural effects of prolonged low-temperature exposure. Overall, the present findings show that chronic exposure to 18 \u00b0C is associated with persistent differences in locomotor, exploratory, and stimulus-directed behaviours, while social preference is comparatively preserved.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ani16182945","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,21]],"date-time":"2026-09-21T11:05:53Z","timestamp":1789988753000},"page":"2945","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Effects of Chronic Low-Temperature Exposure on the Behaviour of Adult Zebrafish (Danio rerio)"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"given":"Amalys Sofia","family":"Sanchez Garcia","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biology and Biotechnologies \u201cCharles Darwin\u201d, Sapienza University, 00185 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Flavia","family":"Frabetti","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences\u2014DIMEC, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gabriella","family":"Tedeschi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science (DIVAS), Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Milano, Via dell\u2019Universit\u00e0 6, 26900 Lodi, Italy"},{"name":"Coordinating Research Centres (CRC) \u201cInnovation for Well\u2013Being and Environment\u201d (I\u2013WE), Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Milano, 20126 Milan, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Arianna","family":"Racca","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centre for Behavioural Sciences and Mental Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanit\u00e0, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Enrico","family":"Alleva","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centre for Behavioural Sciences and Mental Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanit\u00e0, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7167-4051","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mattia","family":"Toni","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biology and Biotechnologies \u201cCharles Darwin\u201d, Sapienza University, 00185 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,19]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1366","DOI":"10.1016\/j.dci.2011.07.002","article-title":"Stress and Immune Modulation in Fish","volume":"35","author":"Tort","year":"2011","journal-title":"Dev. 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