title: A novel behavioural registration system LABORAS and the social interaction paradigm detect long-term functional deficits following middle cerebral artery occlusion in the rat.
abstract: Following stroke, patients suffer a wide range of disabilities including motor impairment, anxiety and depression. However, to date, characterisation of rodent stroke models has concentrated mainly on the investigation of motor deficits. The aim of the present studies was therefore to investigate home cage behaviour (as assessed by a recently developed automatic behavioural classification system, LABORAS) and social behaviour (as a measure of anxiety) in rats following transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (tMCAO). Rats subjected to tMCAO (90 min) showed deficits in general home cage behaviours including locomotion, rearing, grooming and drinking for up to 7 weeks post occlusion, as compared with sham operated controls. In addition, a significant decrease in the total duration of social interaction was also observed in occluded rats compared with shams. The data shows that in addition to motor deficits, animals display changes in home cage behaviour and decreased social behaviour which, in contrast to motor function, are prolonged over time. Transient MCAO in rats may therefore provide a pre-clinical model to investigate agents offering symptomatic relief for ischaemia-induced motor deficits and anxiety over time following injury.
authors.affiliation: Neurology and GI CEDD, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals, New Frontiers Science Park, Third Avenue, Harlow, Essex CMI9 5AW, UK. leann.p.quinn@gsk.com
authors.forename: Leann P
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Quinn
authors.forename: Robert I
authors.initials: RI
authors.lastname: Grundy
authors.forename: Colin A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Campbell
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Collier
authors.forename: Amanda
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lawman
authors.forename: Tania O
authors.initials: TO
authors.lastname: Stean
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Billinton
authors.forename: Andrew A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Parsons
authors.forename: Neil
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Upton
authors.forename: Mark S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Duxon
authors.forename: Elaine A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Irving
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001007:Anxiety / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D020244:Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity; D009460:Neurologic Examination; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012919:Social Behavior; D015431:Weight Loss