University of Calgary Faculty of Medicine

3 ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN JoVE

Neuroscience

Visualizing the Effects of a Positive Early Experience, Tactile Stimulation, on Dendritic Morphology and Synaptic Connectivity with Golgi-Cox Staining

Richelle Mychasiuk¹, Robbin Gibb¹, Bryan Kolb¹

¹Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge

This paper describes the procedures for tactile stimulation of rat pups and subsequent Golgi-Cox staining of neuronal morphology. Tactile stimulation is a positive experience that is administered in the perinatal period by stroking pups with a household duster. Golgi-cox staining is a reliable procedure permitting the visualization of entire neurons.

Behavior

Inchworming: A Novel Motor Stereotypy in the BTBR T⁺ Itpr3^tf/J Mouse Model of Autism

Jacklyn D. Smith¹, Jong M. Rho¹, Susan A. Masino², Richelle Mychasiuk¹

¹Departments of Paediatrics and Clinical Neurosciences, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary Faculty of Medicine, ²Department of Psychology, Neuroscience Program, Trinity College

Inchworming is a highly repetitive synchronous digging motion displayed by BTBR T⁺ Itpr^3tf/J (BTBR) mice when placed in a testing cage with sufficient sawdust bedding. The procedure is a modification of the juvenile social interaction protocol and is used here to assess repetitive motor stereotypies relevant to Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Medicine

A Novel Model of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury for Juvenile Rats

Richelle Mychasiuk¹, Allyson Farran¹, Mariana Angoa-Perez², Denise Briggs², Donald Kuhn², Michael J. Esser¹

¹Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, ²Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine & John D. Dingell VA Medical Center

The modified weight-drop technique is an easy, cost-effective procedure used for the induction of mild traumatic brain injury in juvenile rats. This novel technique produces clinically relevant symptomology that will advance the study of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and concussion.