Name: a behavioral test battery for the repeated assessment of motor skills, mood, and cognition in mice
Uploaded: 2019-03-02T13:00:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about A Behavioral Test Battery for the Repeated Assessment of Motor Skills, Mood, and Cognition in Mice at JoVE.com

The authors thank Dr. Cora SW Lai from the School of Biomedical Sciences, the University of Hong Kong, for lending the elevated plus maze test, and the Department of Anesthesiology from the University of Hong Kong for lending the rotarod test apparatus.

All methods described here have been approved by the Committee on the Use of Live Animals in Teaching and Research (CULATR), the University of Hong Kong.
1. General protocol
NOTE: This section is based on Deacon19.
<ol>
	<li>Behavioral room setup
	<ol>
		<li>Get rid of unrelated stimulation/distraction, including direct bright light on the experimental apparatus, odor, noise, and other irrelevant animals, i...

<ol>
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M. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=husbandry+and+handling+of+rodents+for+behavioral+experiments.">husbandry and handling of rodents for behavioral experiments.</a> Nature Protocols. 1 (2), 936-946 (2006).</li><li>Poon, D. C., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=PKR+deficiency+alters+E.+coli-induced+sickness+behaviors+but+does+not+exacerbate+neuroimmune+responses+or+bacterial+load.">PKR deficiency alters E. coli-induced sickness behaviors but does not exacerbate neuroimmune responses or bacterial load.</a> Journal of Neuroinflammation. 12, 212 (2015).</li><li>O'Leary, T. P., Gunn, R. K., Brown, R. 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(59), e3769 (2012).</li><li>Angoa-Perez, M., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Mice+genetically+depleted+of+brain+serotonin+do+not+display+a+depression-like+behavioral+phenotype.">Mice genetically depleted of brain serotonin do not display a depression-like behavioral phenotype.</a> ACS Chemical Neuroscience. 5 (10), 908-919 (2014).</li><li>Blazquez, G., Canete, T., Tobena, A., Gimenez-Llort, L., Fernandez-Teruel, A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Cognitive+and+emotional+profiles+of+aged+Alzheimer's+disease+(3xTgAD)+mice:+effects+of+environmental+enrichment+and+sexual+dimorphism.">Cognitive and emotional profiles of aged Alzheimer's disease (3xTgAD) mice: effects of environmental enrichment and sexual dimorphism.</a> Behavioural Brain Research. 268, 185-201 (2014).</li><li>Gimenez-Llort, L., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Modeling+behavioral+and+neuronal+symptoms+of+Alzheimer's+disease+in+mice:+a+role+for+intraneuronal+amyloid.">Modeling behavioral and neuronal symptoms of Alzheimer's disease in mice: a role for intraneuronal amyloid.</a> Neuroscience &amp; Biobehavioral Reviews. 31 (1), 125-147 (2007).</li><li>Lad, H. 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Behavioral analysis of mice is critical for neurodegeneration research. While cognitive function is often the most susceptible domain of behavior affected in neurodegenerative diseases, mood dysfunction, such as depression and anxiety, is often comorbid. Moreover, motor function often affects the interpretation of the results in some tests, such as the novel object recognition test, the elevated plus maze test, and the social interaction test. Based on these thoughts, a comprehensive behavioral test battery is required f...

Neurodegenerative diseases featured devastating behavioral symptoms, including cognitive impairment, mood dysfunctions such as anxiety and depression, or motor dysfunction1. The pathogenesis of various kinds of neurodegenerative diseases is unclear2. Accumulative studies indicate that genetic and environmental factors might both contribute to the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases. Identifying the risk factor of neurodegeneration requires behavioral analysis. Although each type of neurodegenerative disease has its signature behavioral symptom (e.g.,&#160;Alzheimer&#39;s disease [AD] is featured with cognitive impairment and Parkinson&#39;s disease [PD] with motor dysfunction). With the progression of the disease, the patients manifest comorbidity of different behavioral abnormalities3. For example, AD patients show symptoms of mood dysfunction in the advanced stage4,5. PD patients may progress into PD-related dementia and develop cognitive impairment6. Based on these features, the behavioral analysis in neurodegeneration models is usually comprehensive and repeated.
To achieve this goal, a battery which contains classical and widely used behavioral tests with excellent validity was designed for behavioral analyses in motor, mood, and cognition. The motor function can be tested by the open-field test7,8 and the accelerating rotarod test. Mood dysfunction, including social dysfunction, depression, and anxiety, are most commonly seen in neurodegenerative diseases5. Hence, this battery includes a social interaction test for sociability9, the elevated plus maze test for anxiety10, and the forced swim test for depression11. Cognitive impairment is one of the most characteristic symptoms in neurodegenerative diseases such as AD and frontotemporal lobar dementia12. Cognitive domains, including short-term memory and episodic memory, are susceptible to neurodegeneration13,14,15. Therefore, the Morris water maze test for spatial learning and memory16 and the novel object recognition test for short-term memory17 are included in the battery. These tests are compatible with each other. The order of the tests was designed to maximize habituation and to minimize interference, to further increase the compatibility within the battery. Since each function is tested by at least two independent tests that are different in principle and method, the results of each test can be further validated. Moreover, the protocols of some tests are highlighted for repeated testing, facilitating the longitudinal study of the development of neurodegenerative diseases. Therefore, this behavior test battery studies different subdomains of behavioral changes seen in various stages of neurodegeneration while costing a minimal number of animals. This battery has been used in a longitudinal study which evaluated the behavioral changes in young adult (3-month-old) male C57BL/6N mice after respiratory exposure to silica nanoparticles, an occupational hazard that is a potential risk factor of neurodegeneration18. However, other strains or models, such as aged mice and genetically manipulated mice, may behave differently than young C57BL/6N mice. Therefore, caution may be required when using this battery in these mice.

<table>
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>chambers in social interaction test</td>
			<td>home made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>(8 cm (L) x 6 cm (W) x 12 cm (H)), transparant with holes, plastic</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>cylindrical tanks used in forced swimming test</td>
			<td>home made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>30 cm height, 20 cm diameters, glass</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>elevated plus maze</td>
			<td>home made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>open arms (30 x 5 x 0.5 cm) ,closed arms (30 x 5 x 16 cm), center platform (5 x 5 x 0.5 cm), 40 cm tall. Plastic, nontransparant</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>IITC Roto-Rod Apparatus</td>
			<td>IITC life science Inc.</td>
			<td>755, series 8</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>open field arena</td>
			<td>home made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>60 cm (L) x 60 cm (W) x 40 cm (H), plastic, nontransparant</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>water maze</td>
			<td>home made</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>120 cm in diameter, 60 cm deep, steel</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

a behavioral test battery for the repeated assessment of motor skills, mood, and cognition in mice

Pharmacological and toxicological studies in neurodegeneration require comprehensive behavioral analysis in mice because motor dysfunctions and dysfunctions in mood and cognition are common and often shared symptoms in neurodegenerative diseases. Shown here is a behavioral test battery for motor, mood, and cognition, which can be repeatedly tested in a longitudinal study. This battery assesses the overall behavioral phenotype in mice by examining each domain of behavior with at least two independent well-accepted tests (i.e., open-field test and rotarod test for motor function, social interaction test, elevated plus maze test, and forced swim test for emotional function, and Morris water maze test and novel object recognition test for cognitive function). Therefore, this sensitive and comprehensive test battery is a powerful tool for the study of behavioral alternation in neurodegeneration.

This behavioral test battery was designed for the comprehensive and valid behavioral analysis of motor, mood, and cognition, which are commonly affected in neurodegeneration5. We have applied this battery to study the behavioral changes in young adult C57BL/6N mice after respiratory exposure to silica nanoparticles for 1 month and 2 months18. The results revealed that C57BL/6N mice exposed to silica nanoparticles showed various behavioral ch...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about A Behavioral Test Battery for the Repeated Assessment of Motor Skills, Mood, and Cognition in Mice at JoVE.com

A Behavioral Test Battery for the Repeated Assessment of Motor Skills, Mood, and Cognition in Mice

A comprehensive behavioral test battery of motor skills, mood&#8212;including social interaction, depression, and anxiety&#8212;and cognition is designed for the repeated assessment of neurodegeneration-related behavioral changes in mice.

Pharmacological and toxicological studies in neurodegeneration require comprehensive behavioral analysis in mice because motor dysfunctions and ...

Neurodegenerative disease often manifests with devastating behavior symptoms, such as cognitive impairment, mood dysfunctions, or even motor dysfunctions. This study allows a behavioral phenotypes to be assessed accurately with a high level of repeatability. We design a comprehensive battery that can be repeatedly utilized in behavior analysis in mice.This test asses motor functions, social interaction, emotional function, and cognitive function. By organizing the order and the interval of tests in this battery, we increased the testing efficiency and decreased the interference among tests and the stress on mice from frequent handling. To begin, arrange the behavioral test in the order described in the text protocol.Perform the open field test in a non-transparent, white, plastic arena. Start the camera recording, and gently put the mouse next to the middle of a wall of the arena, facing the wall. Record the mouse's behavior for 10 minutes, and return it to its home cage.Next, divide the arena into four by four squares on the computer screen. Count the number of times the mouse crosses the gridlines in the arena to assess locomotor function. To gauge anxiety, measure the amount of time that the mouse spends in the central area of the arena.Conduct the elevated plus maze test on the same day. Once all mice finish the open field test, place the mouse at the junction of the open and closed arms. Record the mouse's behavior for five minutes before returning the mouse to its home cage.After two consecutive days of open field test, set up the novel object recognition test according to the text protocol. Start the camera, and place the mouse in the arena, facing the middle of the wall, to familiarize the mouse. Record the mouse's behavior for 10 minutes.Then return the mouse to its home cage. 24 hours after the familiarization, repeat the test with one novel object. Measure the time that the mouse interacts with a new object and a familiar object separately.Then calculate the mouse's memory as the preference to the novel object. For the social interaction test, use an open field arena with two transparent chambers with holes on the surface. Place the subject mouse in the arena for a three-minute objects exploration period to habituate the mouse to the chambers.Then return the subject mouse to its home cage and clean the arena. Put a novel mouse into one of the chambers. Then reintroduce the subject mouse to the arena and record for three minutes.While reviewing the video, gauge social interaction by measuring the ratio of time the subject mouse spends interacting with the novel mouse chamber or the empty chamber. Next perform the accelerating rotarod test. In each trial, place the mouse on the static rod facing the wall opposite to the machine.Habituate the mice to the rotarod by training it for three days in the naive mice before the onset of possible symptoms, so that the mouse equally learns the scale. Stop the device when the mouse drops, and record the time the mouse spent on the rod. Repeat this process two more times before returning the mouse to its home cage.Next put the water maze in the center of a behavioral room, and mark the position of the maze to ensure the position of the water maze remains constant. Divide the maze into four imaginary quadrants. Hang visual cues in the center of each quadrant.Then place a platform in the center of the fourth quadrant and mark its location. Fill the maze with water, colored white with milk powder, until the water level is one centimeter higher than the platform. At the beginning of each training trial, start the video recording, and gently put the mouse in the maze.Stay out of sight of the mouse. Return the mouse to its home cage when the mouse cannot locate the platform within 60 seconds or if the mouse locates the platform within 60 seconds and stays on it for 10 seconds. After the test is over, stop the video, and put the mouse in its home cage under an infrared light.Finally perform the probe phase of the water maze test as previously described, without the platform. Next prepare the cylindrical tank for the forced swim test. Start the video recording, and gently put the mouse in the water in the center of the tank.Record the mouse for six minutes before putting the mouse back in its home cage. Review the video of the forced swim test. Measure the immobility time in the last five minutes of the video.This protocol was to study behavioral changes in mice after respiratory exposure to silica nanoparticles. The results in the open field test and the accelerating rotarod test demonstrated that silica nanoparticles did not affect locomotor or motor function in mice. Social interaction activity was affected after one-month exposure to silica nanoparticles, however the open field test, elevated plus maze test, and the forced swim test did not indicated any anxiety or depression after one month of exposure.A two-month exposure to silica nanoparticles did result in anxiety, as demonstrated by the results of the elevated plus maze test. Cognitive impairment was also detected in the water maze test after two months of exposure. This battery is designed for the comprehensive behavior analysis in neurodegeneration in the C57 mouse strain.It is most suitable for neurodegeneration-related longitudinal studies in toxicity of neurotoxin or potential risk factors, or drug development, which often features long-term administration and repeated testing.

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Behavior

The Resident-intruder Paradigm: A Standardized Test for Aggression, Violence and Social Stress

This video publication explains in detail the experimental protocol of the resident-intruder paradigm in rats. This test is a standardized method to measure offensive aggression and defensive behavior in a semi natural setting. The most important behavioral elements performed by the resident and the intruder are demonstrated in the video and illustrated using artistic drawings. The use of the resident intruder paradigm for acute and chronic social stress experiments is explained as well. Finally, some brief tests and criteria are presented to distinguish aggression from its more violent and pathological forms.

This video shows the resident-intruder paradigm in rats. This test is a standardized method to measure offensive aggression, defensive behavior and violence in a semi-natural setting. The use of the paradigm for social stress experiments is explained as well.

This video publication explains in detail the experimental protocol of the resident-intruder paradigm in rats. This test is a standardized method to ...

The Crossmodal Congruency Task as a Means to Obtain an Objective Behavioral Measure in the Rubber Hand Illusion Paradigm

The rubber hand illusion (RHI) is a popular experimental paradigm. Participants view touch on an artificial rubber hand while the participants' own hidden hand is touched. If the viewed and felt touches are given at the same time then this is sufficient to induce the compelling experience that the rubber hand is one's own hand. The RHI can be used to investigate exactly how the brain constructs distinct body representations for one's own body. Such representations are crucial for successful interactions with the external world. To obtain a subjective measure of the RHI, researchers typically ask participants to rate statements such as "I felt as if the rubber hand were my hand". Here we demonstrate how the crossmodal congruency task can be used to obtain an objective behavioral measure within this paradigm.
The variant of the crossmodal congruency task we employ involves the presentation of tactile targets and visual distractors. Targets and distractors are spatially congruent (i.e. same finger) on some trials and incongruent (i.e. different finger) on others. The difference in performance between incongruent and congruent trials - the crossmodal congruency effect (CCE) - indexes multisensory interactions. Importantly, the CCE is modulated both by viewing a hand as well as the synchrony of viewed and felt touch which are both crucial factors for the RHI.
The use of the crossmodal congruency task within the RHI paradigm has several advantages. It is a simple behavioral measure which can be repeated many times and which can be obtained during the illusion while participants view the artificial hand. Furthermore, this measure is not susceptible to observer and experimenter biases. The combination of the RHI paradigm with the crossmodal congruency task allows in particular for the investigation of multisensory processes which are critical for modulations of body representations as in the RHI.

We demonstrate how an objective measure can be employed in the widely employed rubber hand illusion paradigm. This measure is obtained by modifying the well-established crossmodal congruency task. This task allows the investigation of multisensory processes which are critical for modulations of body representations as in the rubber hand illusion.

The rubber hand illusion (RHI) is a popular experimental paradigm. Participants view touch on an artificial rubber hand while the participants' own hidden ...

Automated, Quantitative Cognitive/Behavioral Screening of Mice: For Genetics, Pharmacology, Animal Cognition and Undergraduate Instruction

We describe a high-throughput, high-volume, fully automated, live-in 24/7 behavioral testing system for assessing the effects of genetic and pharmacological manipulations on basic mechanisms of cognition and learning in mice. A standard polypropylene mouse housing tub is connected through an acrylic tube to a standard commercial mouse test box. The test box has 3 hoppers, 2 of which are connected to pellet feeders. All are internally illuminable with an LED and monitored for head entries by infrared (IR) beams. Mice live in the environment, which eliminates handling during screening. They obtain their food during two or more daily feeding periods by performing in operant (instrumental) and Pavlovian (classical) protocols, for which we have written protocol-control software and quasi-real-time data analysis and graphing software. The data analysis and graphing routines are written in a MATLAB-based language created to simplify greatly the analysis of large time-stamped behavioral and physiological event records and to preserve a full data trail from raw data through all intermediate analyses to the published graphs and statistics within a single data structure. The data-analysis code harvests the data several times a day and subjects it to statistical and graphical analyses, which are automatically stored in the &#34;cloud&#34; and on in-lab computers. Thus, the progress of individual mice is visualized and quantified daily. The data-analysis code talks to the protocol-control code, permitting the automated advance from protocol to protocol of individual subjects. The behavioral protocols implemented are matching, autoshaping, timed hopper-switching, risk assessment in timed hopper-switching, impulsivity measurement, and the circadian anticipation of food availability. Open-source protocol-control and data-analysis code makes the addition of new protocols simple. Eight test environments fit in a 48 in x 24 in x 78 in&#160;cabinet; two such cabinets (16 environments) may be controlled by one computer.

Fully automated system for measuring physiologically meaningful properties of the mechanisms mediating spatial localization, temporal localization, duration, rate&#160;and probability estimation, risk assessment, impulsivity, and the accuracy and precision of memory, in order to assess the effects of genetic and pharmacological manipulations on foundational mechanisms of cognition in mice.

We describe a high-throughput, high-volume, fully automated, live-in 24/7 behavioral testing system for assessing the effects of genetic and ...

Compensatory Limb Use and Behavioral Assessment of Motor Skill Learning Following Sensorimotor Cortex Injury in a Mouse Model of Ischemic Stroke

Mouse models have become increasingly popular in the field of behavioral neuroscience, and specifically in studies of experimental stroke. As models advance, it is important to develop sensitive behavioral measures specific to the mouse. The present protocol describes a skilled motor task for use in mouse models of stroke. The Pasta Matrix Reaching Task functions as a versatile and sensitive behavioral assay that permits experimenters to collect accurate outcome data and manipulate limb use to mimic human clinical phenomena including compensatory strategies (i.e., learned non-use) and focused rehabilitative training. When combined with neuroanatomical tools, this task also permits researchers to explore the mechanisms that support behavioral recovery of function (or lack thereof) following stroke. The task is both simple and affordable to set up and conduct, offering a variety of training and testing options for numerous research questions concerning functional outcome following injury. Though the task has been applied to mouse models of stroke, it may also be beneficial in studies of functional outcome in other upper extremity injury models.

Mouse models have become increasingly popular in studies of behavioral neuroscience. As models advance, it is important to develop sensitive behavioral measures specific to the mouse. This protocol describes the Pasta Matrix Reaching Task, which is a skilled motor task for use in mouse models of stroke.

Mouse models have become increasingly popular in the field of behavioral neuroscience, and specifically in studies of experimental stroke. As models ...

The Modified Hole Board - Measuring Behavior, Cognition and Social Interaction in Mice and Rats

This protocol describes the modified hole board (mHB), which combines features from a traditional hole board and open field and is designed to measure multiple dimensions of unconditioned behavior in small laboratory mammals (e.g., mice, rats, tree shrews and small primates). This paradigm is a valuable alternative for the use of a behavioral test battery, since a broad behavioral spectrum of an animal&#8217;s behavioral profile can be investigated in one single test.
The apparatus consists of a box, representing the &#8216;protected&#8217; area, separated from a group compartment. A board, on which small cylinders are staggered in three lines, is placed in the center of the box, representing the &#8216;unprotected&#8217; area of the set-up. The cognitive abilities of the animals can be measured by baiting some cylinders on the board and measuring the working and reference memory. Other unconditioned behavior, such as activity-related-, anxiety-related- and social behavior, can be observed using this paradigm. Behavioral flexibility and the ability to habituate to a novel environment can additionally be observed by subjecting the animals to multiple trials in the mHB, revealing insight into the animals&#8217; adaptive capacities.
Due to testing order effects in a behavioral test battery, na&#239;ve animals should be used for each individual experiment. By testing multiple behavioral dimensions in a single paradigm and thereby circumventing this issue, the number of experimental animals used is reduced. Furthermore, by avoiding social isolation during testing and without the need to food deprive the animals, the mHB represents a behavioral test system, inducing if any, very low amount of stress.

This protocol describes the modified hole board, which is a behavioral test set-up that comprises the characteristics of an open field and a traditional hole board. This set-up enables the differential analysis of unconditioned behavior of small laboratory mammals as well as the analysis of cognitive abilities.

This protocol describes the modified hole board (mHB), which combines features from a traditional hole board and open field and is designed to measure ...

The Double-H Maze: A Robust Behavioral Test for Learning and Memory in Rodents

Spatial cognition research in rodents typically employs the use of maze tasks, whose attributes vary from one maze to the next. These tasks vary by their behavioral flexibility and required memory duration, the number of goals and pathways, and also the overall task complexity. A confounding feature in many of these tasks is the lack of control over the strategy employed by the rodents to reach the goal, e.g., allocentric (declarative-like) or egocentric (procedural) based strategies. The double-H maze is a novel water-escape memory task that addresses this issue, by allowing the experimenter to direct the type of strategy learned during the training period. The double-H maze is a transparent device, which consists of a central alleyway with three arms protruding on both sides, along with an escape platform submerged at the extremity of one of these arms.
Rats can be trained using an allocentric strategy by alternating the start position in the maze in an unpredictable manner (see protocol 1; &#167;4.7), thus requiring them to learn the location of the platform based on the available allothetic cues. Alternatively, an egocentric learning strategy (protocol 2; &#167;4.8) can be employed by releasing the rats from the same position during each trial, until they learn the procedural pattern required to reach the goal. This task has been proven to allow for the formation of stable memory traces.
Memory can be probed following the training period in a misleading probe trial, in which the starting position for the rats alternates. Following an egocentric learning paradigm, rats typically resort to an allocentric-based strategy, but only when their initial view on the extra-maze cues differs markedly from their original position. This task is ideally suited to explore the effects of drugs/perturbations on allocentric/egocentric memory performance, as well as the interactions between these two memory systems.

The goal of this protocol is to investigate spatial cognition in rodents. The double-H water maze is a novel test, which is particularly useful to elucidate the different components of learning, consolidation and memory, as well as the interplay of memory systems.

Spatial cognition research in rodents typically employs the use of maze tasks, whose attributes vary from one maze to the next. These tasks vary by their ...

Assessment of Social Cognition in Non-human Primates Using a Network of Computerized Automated Learning Device (ALDM) Test Systems

Fagot &#38; Paleressompoulle1 and Fagot &#38; Bonte2 have published an automated learning device (ALDM) for the study of cognitive abilities of monkeys maintained in semi-free ranging conditions. Data accumulated during the last five years have consistently demonstrated the efficiency of this protocol to investigate individual/physical cognition in monkeys, and have further shown that this procedure reduces stress level during animal testing3. This paper demonstrates that networks of ALDM can also be used to investigate different facets of social cognition and in-group expressed behaviors in monkeys, and describes three illustrative protocols developed for that purpose. The first study demonstrates how ethological assessments of social behavior and computerized assessments of cognitive performance could be integrated to investigate the effects of socially exhibited moods on the cognitive performance of individuals. The second study shows that batteries of ALDM running in parallel can provide unique information on the influence of the presence of others on task performance. Finally, the last study shows that networks of ALDM test units can also be used to study issues related to social transmission and cultural evolution. Combined together, these three studies demonstrate clearly that ALDM testing is a highly promising experimental tool for bridging the gap in the animal literature between research on individual cognition and research on social cognition.

Assessment of Social Cognition in Non-human Primates Using a Network of Computerized Automated Learning Device ALDM Test Systems

Fagot &#38; Paleressompoulle1 have published an automated learning device (ALDM) aimed at testing individual cognitive abilities in semi-free ranging monkeys. The main goal of our protocol is to use a network of ALDM test units to study social cognition in non-human primates.

Fagot &#38; Paleressompoulle1 and Fagot &#38; Bonte2 have published an automated learning device (ALDM) for the study of cognitive abilities of monkeys ...

Assessment of Cocaine-induced Behavioral Sensitization and Conditioned Place Preference in Mice

It is thought that rewarding experiences with drugs create strong contextual associations and encourage repeated intake. In turn, repeated exposures to drugs of abuse make lasting alterations in the brain function of vulnerable individuals, and these persistent alterations likely serve to maintain the maladaptive drug seeking and taking behaviors characteristic of addiction/dependence2. In rodents, reward experience and contextual associations are frequently measured using the conditioned place preference assay, or CPP, wherein preference for a previously drug-paired context is measured. Behavioral sensitization, on the other hand, is an increase in a drug-induced behavior that develops progressively over repeated exposures. Since sensitized behaviors can often be measured after several months of drug abstinence, depending on the dose and length of initial exposure, they are considered observable correlates of lasting drug-induced plasticity. Researchers have found these assays useful in determining the neurobiological substrates mediating aspects of addiction as well as assessing the potential of different interventions in disrupting these behaviors. This manuscript describes basic, effective protocols for mouse CPP and locomotor behavioral sensitization to cocaine.

This protocol is intended to enable researchers to conduct experiments designed to test these aspects of addiction using the conditioned place preference and locomotor behavioral sensitization assays.

It is thought that rewarding experiences with drugs create strong contextual associations and encourage repeated intake. In turn, repeated exposures to ...

The Rodent Psychomotor Vigilance Test (rPVT): A Method for Assessing Neurobehavioral Performance in Rats and Mice

The human Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) is a widely used procedure for measuring changes in fatigue and sustained attention. The present article describes a rodent version of the PVT&#8212;termed the &#34;rPVT&#34;&#8212;that measures similar aspects of attention (i.e., performance accuracy, motor speed, premature responding, and lapses in attention). Data are presented that demonstrate both the short- and long-term usefulness of the rPVT when employed with laboratory rats. Rats easily learn the rPVT, and learning to perform the basic procedure takes less than two weeks of training. Once acquired, rat performances in the rPVT show a high degree of similarity to these same performance measures in the human PVT, including similarities in, lapses in attention, reaction times, vigilance decrements across session time (i.e., the human &#34;time-on-task&#34; effects), and the response-stimulus interval (RSI) effect described for humans. Thus the rPVT can be an extremely valuable tool for assessing the effects of a wide range of variables on sustained attention quite similar to human PVT performances, and thus can be useful for developing novel treatments for neurobehavioral dysfunctions.

The Rodent Psychomotor Vigilance Test rPVT: A Method for Assessing Neurobehavioral Performance in Rats and Mice

A rat version of the human Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) is described that measures aspects of attention similar to those measured with the human PVT, including aspects of human vigilance such as performance accuracy, motor speed, premature responding, and lapses in attention.

The human Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) is a widely used procedure for measuring changes in fatigue and sustained attention. The present article ...

Assessing Working Memory in Children: The Comprehensive Assessment Battery for Children &#8211; Working Memory (CABC-WM)

The Comprehensive Assessment Battery for Children - Working Memory (CABC-WM) is a computer-based battery designed to assess different components of working memory in young school-age children. Working memory deficits have been identified in children with language-based learning disabilities, including dyslexia1,2 and language impairment3,4, but it is not clear whether these children exhibit deficits in subcomponents of working memory, such as visuospatial or phonological working memory. The CABC-WM is administered on a desktop computer with a touchscreen interface and was specifically developed to be engaging and motivating for children. Although the long-term goal of the CABC-WM is to provide individualized working memory profiles in children, the present study focuses on the initial success and utility of the CABC-WM for measuring central executive, visuospatial, phonological loop, and binding constructs in children with typical development. Immediate next steps are to administer the CABC-WM to children with specific language impairment, dyslexia, and comorbid specific language impairment and dyslexia.

Working memory predicts a significant amount of variance for a variety of cognitive tasks, including speaking, reading, and writing. However, few tools are available to assess working memory in children. We present an innovative, computer-based battery that comprehensively assesses different components of working memory in school-age children.

The Comprehensive Assessment Battery for Children - Working Memory (CABC-WM) is a computer-based battery designed to assess different components of ...