After inducing the experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis in the mouse, have a blinded investigator perform daily assessment of the animal's clinical scores. Score each animal on a scale from 0 to 5 to evaluate the progression of the disease. To evaluate motor performance, initiate Rotor-Rod sessions for the mice daily, starting at 1 DPI until the study requires.
Conduct each session for 300 seconds, during which, increase the rotation speed of the rod linearly from 4 to 40 rotations per minute. When the animal loses its balance and falls from the Rotor-Rod device, it lands on the ground triggering a sensor that records the time. Record the animal's performance and score it as a latency to fall.
A significant increase in the clinical score or CS with time was observed in both male and female mice, starting from 10 DPI until the endpoint. Females displayed higher CS than males, but not significantly. A tendency for earlier disease onset was also observed in females compared to males.
Furthermore, females showed a significantly higher cumulative CS compared to males. A significant decrease in the Rotor-Rod performance with time was observed in both male and female mice. Particularly, males displayed the minimum performance at 16 DPI, while the females at 17 DPI.
Males performed better than females, especially during the chronic phase of the disease, probably as a consequence of lower CS.
