| Summary: | The agricultural, livestock and fish farming activities carried out in Colombia have contributed to the current contamination with pesticides of water sources, this being a constantly rising environmental problem. One such water source with a high rate of contamination is Lake Tota. This lake has been listed as one of the most threatened ecosystems on the planet by the global network of wetlands. Despite the environmental problems that contamination of water sources represents in our country, there are very few studies that investigate the cytogenetic damage generated by exposure to toxic agents. In this regard, an optimal biological model for the evaluation of the genotoxic effects of occupational or environmental exposure to pesticides is the zebrafish, due to its sensitivity to contaminants, sensitivity evidenced by damage to chromosomal material. Considering the above, the aim of this study was to standardize banding cytogenetics (GTG Banding) and molecular cytogenetics (Fluorescence In situ Hybridization-FISH) techniques, for their application in genotoxicity studies using zebrafish (Danio rerio) larvae as an in vivo model. The development of this study allowed the standardization of the GTG banding technique for the chromosome count in zebrafish larvae, as well as the standardization of the FISH technique, important in the evaluation of chromosomal instability. The standardization of banding and molecular cytogenetics on zebrafish, constitutes a very important tool for the application of in vivo study models that allow evaluate the chromosomal damage generates by the genotoxic agent’s exposure, including the pesticides.
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