Neurobiology Research Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University , Okinawa , Japan.
J Neurophysiol. 2019 Feb 1;121(2):490-499. doi: 10.1152/jn.00295.2018. Epub 2018 Nov 7.
Bimanual coordination, in which both hands work together to achieve a goal, is crucial for the basic needs of life, such as gathering and feeding. Such coordinated motor skill is highly developed in primates, where it has been most extensively studied. Rodents also exhibit remarkable dexterity and coordination of forelimbs during food handling and consumption. However, rodents have been less commonly used in the study of bimanual coordination because of limited quantitative measuring techniques. In this article we describe a high-resolution tracking system that enables kinematic analysis of rat forelimb movement. The system is used to quantify forelimb movements bilaterally in head-fixed rats during food handling and consumption. Forelimb movements occurring naturally during feeding were encoded as continuous three-dimensional trajectories. The trajectories were then automatically segmented and analyzed, using a novel algorithm, according to the laterality of movement speed or the asymmetry of movement direction across the forelimbs. Bilateral forelimb movements were frequently observed during spontaneous food handling. Both symmetry and asymmetry in movement direction were frequently observed, with symmetric bilateral movements quantitatively more common. The proposed method overcomes a limitation in the precise quantification of bimanual coordination in rodents. This enables the use of powerful rodent-based research tools such as optogenetics and chemogenetics in the further investigation of neural mechanisms of bimanual coordination. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We describe a new method for quantifying and classifying three-dimensional, bilateral forelimb trajectories in head-fixed rats. The method overcomes limits on quantifying bimanual coordination in rats. When applied to kinematic analysis of food handling behavior, continuous forelimb trajectories were automatically segmented and classified. Bilateral forelimb movements were observed more frequently than unilateral movements during spontaneous food handling. Both symmetry and asymmetry in movement direction were frequently observed. However, symmetric bilateral forelimb movements were more common.
双手协调，即双手共同协作以实现目标，对于生命的基本需求至关重要，如采集和进食。这种协调的运动技能在灵长类动物中高度发达，在灵长类动物中对此进行了最广泛的研究。啮齿动物在处理和进食食物时，前肢也表现出显著的灵活性和协调性。然而，由于定量测量技术的限制，啮齿动物在双手协调研究中使用较少。在本文中，我们描述了一种高分辨率跟踪系统，该系统可实现大鼠前肢运动的运动学分析。该系统用于在头部固定的大鼠进食过程中量化双手协调的前肢运动。将进食过程中自然发生的前肢运动编码为连续的三维轨迹。然后，根据运动速度的侧移或前肢运动方向的不对称性，使用一种新算法自动对轨迹进行分段和分析。在自发处理食物的过程中经常观察到双侧前肢运动。经常观察到运动方向的对称性和不对称性，对称的双侧运动更为常见。所提出的方法克服了在啮齿动物中精确量化双手协调的局限性。这使得能够在进一步研究双手协调的神经机制时，使用基于啮齿动物的强大研究工具，如光遗传学和化学遗传学。新与值得注意之处我们描述了一种新的方法，用于量化和分类头部固定大鼠的三维双侧前肢轨迹。该方法克服了在大鼠中量化双手协调的限制。当应用于对进食行为的运动学分析时，连续的前肢轨迹自动分段和分类。在自发进食过程中，观察到双侧前肢运动比单侧运动更频繁。经常观察到运动方向的对称性和不对称性。然而，对称的双侧前肢运动更为常见。
