Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (IBYME-CONICET), Vuelta de Obligado 2490, C1428ADN, Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas, CONICET, Godoy Cruz 2290, C1425FQB, Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas, CONICET, Godoy Cruz 2290, C1425FQB, Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina; Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ingeniería, Instituto de Ingeniería Biomédica, Paseo Colon 850, C1063ACV, Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
J Neurosci Methods. 2018 Mar 1;297:22-30. doi: 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2017.12.018. Epub 2017 Dec 26.
While spherical treadmills are widely used in mouse models, there are only a few experimental setups suitable for adult rats, and none of them include head-fixation.
We introduce a novel spherical treadmill apparatus for head-fixed rats that allows a wide repertory of natural responses. The rat is secured to a frame and placed on a freely rotating sphere. While being head-fixed, it can walk in any direction and perform different motor tasks.
Instead of being air-lifted, which is acceptable for light animals, the treadmill is sustained by three spherical bearings ensuring a smooth rotation in any direction. Movement detection is accomplished using a video camera that registers a dot pattern plotted on the sphere.
Long Evans rats were trained to perform an auditory discrimination task in a Go/No-Go (walking/not-walking) paradigm. Animals were able to successfully discriminate between a 1 kHz and a 8 kHz auditory stimulus and execute the correct response, reaching the learning criterion (80% of correct responses) in approximately 20 training sessions.
Our system broadens the possibilities of head-fixation experiments in adult rats making them compatible with spatial navigation on a spherical treadmill.
虽然球形跑步机在小鼠模型中被广泛使用，但适合成年大鼠的实验装置却很少，而且没有一个装置包括头部固定。
我们引入了一种新的用于头部固定大鼠的球形跑步机设备，它允许进行广泛的自然反应。大鼠被固定在一个框架上，并放在一个自由旋转的球体上。在头部固定的情况下，它可以向任何方向行走，并执行不同的运动任务。
跑步机不是像空气提升那样适用于轻动物，而是由三个球形轴承支撑，确保在任何方向上都能平稳旋转。运动检测是使用注册球体上绘制的点图案的摄像机来完成的。
长耳大鼠被训练在 Go/No-Go（行走/不行走）范式中执行听觉辨别任务。动物能够成功地辨别 1 kHz 和 8 kHz 的听觉刺激，并执行正确的反应，在大约 20 次训练课程中达到学习标准（80%的正确反应）。
我们的系统拓宽了成年大鼠头部固定实验的可能性，使其与球形跑步机上的空间导航兼容。
