Francis Nikolas A, Kanold Patrick O
Department of Biology, University of MarylandCollege Park, MD, USA; A. James Clark School of Engineering, Institute for Systems Research, University of MarylandCollege Park, MD, USA.
Front Neural Circuits. 2017 Mar 1;11:10. doi: 10.3389/fncir.2017.00010. eCollection 2017.
Recent advances in neuroimaging and genetics have made mice an advantageous animal model for studying the neurophysiology of sensation, cognition, and locomotion. A key benefit of mice is that they provide a large population of test subjects for behavioral screening. Reflex-based assays of hearing in mice, such as the widely used acoustic startle response, are less accurate than operant conditioning in measuring auditory processing. To date, however, there are few cost-effective options for scalable operant conditioning systems. Here, we describe a new system for automated operant conditioning, the Psibox. It is assembled from low cost parts, designed to fit within typical commercial wire-top cages, and allows large numbers of mice to train independently in their home cages on positive reinforcement tasks. We found that groups of mice trained together learned to accurately detect sounds within 2 weeks of training. In addition, individual mice isolated from groups also showed good task performance. The Psibox facilitates high-throughput testing of sensory, motor, and cognitive skills in mice, and provides a readily available animal population for studies ranging from experience-dependent neural plasticity to rodent models of mental disorders.
神经成像和遗传学的最新进展使小鼠成为研究感觉、认知和运动神经生理学的理想动物模型。小鼠的一个关键优势在于，它们能为行为筛选提供大量实验对象。基于反射的小鼠听力检测方法，如广泛使用的听觉惊吓反应，在测量听觉处理方面不如操作性条件反射准确。然而，迄今为止，对于可扩展的操作性条件反射系统，几乎没有经济高效的选择。在此，我们描述一种用于自动操作性条件反射的新系统——Psibox。它由低成本部件组装而成，设计用于适配典型的商用铁丝笼顶，能让大量小鼠在其笼舍中独立接受正向强化任务训练。我们发现，一起训练的小鼠组在训练两周内学会了准确检测声音。此外，从组中分离出来的个体小鼠也表现出良好的任务执行能力。Psibox有助于对小鼠的感觉、运动和认知技能进行高通量测试，并为从经验依赖性神经可塑性到精神障碍啮齿动物模型等研究提供随时可用的动物群体。
