title: Gerbils exhibit stable open-arms exploration across repeated testing on the elevated plus-maze.
abstract: Repeated testing on the elevated plus-maze (EPM) leads rats and mice to avoid the open-arms of the apparatus. The effect of multiple exposures to the EPM on the behavioral profile of gerbils is unknown. In this study, young and middle-aged gerbils were exposed to the EPM and four retests were carried out 24, 48, 72 and 96h after the first trial in order to determine whether animals exhibited open-arms avoidance. In addition, groups of young and middle-aged gerbils were exposed to the EPM for 20-min followed by a 5-min retest trial 24h apart to analyze the effect of a prolonged exposure to the EPM on open-arms exploration during first trial and retest. Gerbils exhibited high exploration of open-arms during the first trial and progressive locomotor decrease across repeated testing. Unlike previous reports for rats and mice, young gerbils showed a stable open-arms exploration both across multiple exposures and during a prolonged exposure to EPM. Middle-aged gerbils also exhibited a stable open-arms exploration during retest prior to the 20-min test. Results suggest a reliable repeated test paradigm for the EPM using our proposed methodology for gerbils.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Animal Behavior, Faculty of Psychology, Fundación Universitaria Konrad Lorenz, Bogotá, Colombia. Electronic address: javierl.ricor@konradlorenz.edu.co.
authors.forename: Javier Leonardo
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Rico
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Animal Behavior, Faculty of Psychology, Fundación Universitaria Konrad Lorenz, Bogotá, Colombia.
authors.forename: Marion
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Penagos-Gil
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Animal Behavior, Faculty of Psychology, Fundación Universitaria Konrad Lorenz, Bogotá, Colombia.
authors.forename: Anderson F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Castañeda
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Animal Behavior, Faculty of Psychology, Fundación Universitaria Konrad Lorenz, Bogotá, Colombia.
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Corredor
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D001007:Anxiety / Q000503:physiopathology; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000502:physiology; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D005106:Exploratory Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D005849:Gerbillinae / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: Age; Anxiety; Elevated plus-maze; Mongolian gerbil; Retest