title: Lickometry: A novel and sensitive method for assessing functional deficits in rats after stroke.
abstract: The need for sensitive, easy to administer assessments of long-term functional deficits is crucial in pre-clinical stroke research. In the present study, we introduce lickometry (lick microstructure analysis) as a precise method to assess sensorimotor deficits up to 40 days after middle cerebral artery occlusion in rats. Impairments in drinking efficiency compared to controls, and a compensatory increase in the number of drinking clusters were observed. This highlights the utility of this easy to administer task in assessing subtle, long-term deficits, which could be likened to oral deficits in patients.
authors.affiliation: 1 School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, UK.
authors.forename: Jewel
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ahmed
authors.affiliation: 2 School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Wales, UK.
authors.forename: Dominic M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Dwyer
authors.affiliation: 1 School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, UK.
authors.forename: Tracy D
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Farr
authors.affiliation: 3 Brain Repair Group, School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, UK.
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Harrison
authors.affiliation: 3 Brain Repair Group, School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, UK.
authors.forename: Stephen B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Dunnett
authors.affiliation: 1 School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, UK.
authors.forename: Rebecca C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Trueman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004326:Drinking; D020244:Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery; D008722:Methods; D011596:Psychomotor Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D051381:Rats; D066191:Sensorimotor Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology*; D020521:Stroke / Q000503:physiopathology*
keywords: Animal models; behaviour (rodent); experimental; focal ischaemia; stroke