Validation of behavioral phenotypes in the BACHD rat model
Autor: | Johanneke E. Van der Harst, Robert Wronski, Judith R. Homberg, Huu Phuc Nguyen, Giuseppe Manfré, Arianna Novati, Stefanie Flunkert |
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Rok vydání: | 2020 |
Předmět: |
Male
Behavioral phenotypes Elevated plus maze Research groups Rat model Stress-related disorders Donders Center for Medical Neuroscience [Radboudumc 13] Morris water navigation task Biology Open field Rats Sprague-Dawley 03 medical and health sciences Behavioral Neuroscience All institutes and research themes of the Radboud University Medical Center 0302 clinical medicine Avoidance Learning Animals Maze Learning 030304 developmental biology 0303 health sciences Behavior Animal Cognition Rats Disease Models Animal Huntington Disease Phenotype Rotarod Performance Test Passive avoidance Neuroscience 030217 neurology & neurosurgery |
Zdroj: | Behavioural Brain Research, 393 Behavioural Brain Research |
ISSN: | 0166-4328 |
Popis: | Huntington disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disorder caused by a polyglutamine expansion in the HTT gene. Various HD animal models have been generated to mimic the motor, cognitive and neuropsychiatric disturbances that affect HD patients. Reproducing disease phenotypes within these models is essential to identify reliable readouts for therapy studies. We validated behavioral phenotypes shown earlier by other research groups in the BACHD rat model, using both previously applied and novel tests for motor, cognitive and anxiety-like behaviors. We first confirmed known BACHD rats' phenotypes in rotarod, open field (OF) and elevated plus maze (EPM) tests. We then assessed the reproducibility of key phenotypes in the model using new tests: cliff hanging, passive avoidance (PA), Morris water maze (MWM), light dark box and light spot tests. We confirmed impaired motor coordination in the rotarod test and reduced activity in the OF. In line with earlier results in BACHD rats using different tests, we showed impaired reversal learning in MWM and decreased anxiety-like behavior with the light spot test supporting the validity of BACHD rats as a model of HD. Results in the EPM, light dark box, cliff hanging and PA tests did not confirm earlier findings. This may depend on phenotype inconsistencies or rather be related to differences in environmental variables, test typology, experimental settings, animal age and chosen behavioral parameters. |
Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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