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A System for Tracking the Dynamics of Social Preference Behavior in Small Rodents
In This Article
Summary
Described here is a novel automated experimental system that offers an alternative to the three-chamber test and also solves several caveats. This system supplies multiple behavioral parameters that enable rigorous analysis of small rodent behavioral dynamics during the social preference and social novelty preference tests.
Abstract
Exploring the neurobiological mechanisms of social behavior requires behavioral tests that can be applied to animal models in an unbiased and observer-independent manner. Since the beginning of the millennium, the three-chamber test has been widely used as a standard paradigm to evaluate sociability (social preference) and social novelty preference in small rodents. However, this test suffers from multiple limitations, including its dependence on spatial navigation and negligence of behavioral dynamics. Presented and validated here is a novel experimental system that offers an alternative to the three-chamber test, while also solving some of its caveats. The system requires a simple and affordable experimental apparatus and publicly available open-source analysis system, which automatically measures and analyzes multiple behavioral parameters at individual and population levels. It allows detailed analysis of the behavioral dynamics of small rodents during any social discrimination test. We demonstrate the efficiency of the system in analyzing the dynamics of social behavior during the social preference and social novelty preference tests as performed by adult male mice and rats. Moreover, we validate the ability of the system to reveal modified dynamics of social behavior in rodents following manipulations such as whisker trimming. Thus, the system allows for rigorous investigation of social behavior and dynamics in small rodent models and supports more accurate comparisons between strains, conditions, and treatments.
Introduction
Revealing the biological mechanisms underlying neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) is one of the main challenges in the field of neuroscience1. Addressing this challenge requires behavioral paradigms and experimental systems that typify the behavior of rodents in a standard and unbiased manner. An influential study published more than a decade ago by Moy and colleagues2 presented the three-chamber test. Since then, this test has been widely used to investigate social behavior in rodent models of NDDs. This test evaluates two innate tendencies of rodents: 1) to stay in the proximity of a social stimulus over an object (so....
Protocol
All methods described have been approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) of the University of Haifa.
1. Experimental Set-up
- Arena
- Construct the experimental arena for mice (Figure 1A,D) by placing a white or black (depending on the animal's color) plexiglass box (37 cm x 22 cm x 35 cm) in the middle of an acoustic chamber (60 cm x 65 cm x 80 cm, made of 2 cm thick wood coated .......
Representative Results
Using the system for the social preference test in C57BL/6J mice
Figure 1 shows three versions of the experimental set-up. The first version (Figure 1A-C) is designed for mice with dark fur colors, such as C57BL/6J mice. The second (Figure 1D-F) is planned for mice with bright fur colors, such as BALB/c or ICR (CD-1) mice. The third is larger (.......
Discussion
The experimental system described here, which was designed as an alternative to the three-chamber apparatus2,5, allows performance of the same tests while solving some of its limitations. The use of triangular chambers, which are located in two opposite corners of the rectangular arena limits the subject-stimulus interaction area to a well-defined plane, thus enabling precise automated analysis of investigation behavior. One advantage is the use of the analysis s.......
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by The Human Frontier Science Program (HFSP grant RGP0019/2015), the Israel Science Foundation (ISF grants #1350/12, 1361/17), by the Milgrom Foundation and by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Space of Israel (Grant #3-12068).
....Materials
| Name | Company | Catalog Number | Comments |
| Flea3 1.3 MP Mono USB3 Vision | FLIR (formerly PointGrey) | FL3-U3-13Y3M-C | Monochromatic Camera |
| FlyCap 2.0 | FLIR (formerly PointGrey) | FlyCapture 2.13.3.61X64 | Video recording software |
| Home 5 minute Epoxy glue | Devocon | 20845 | For gluing the metal mesh to the Plexiglas stimuli chambers |
| Matlab 2014-2019 | MathWorks | R2014a - R2019a | Programming environment |
| Plexiglas boards (6 mm thickBlack or white) | Melina (1990) LTD, Israel | NaN | For arena and stimuli chambers construction |
| Red led strips (60 leds per meter) connected to a 12V power supply | 2012topdeal eBay supplier | NaN | For illumination of the acoustic chamber |
References
- Insel, T. R. The challenge of translation in social neuroscience: a review of oxytocin, vasopressin, and affiliative behavior. Neuron. 65 (6), 768-779 (2010).
- Moy, S. S., et al.
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