University of Eastern Finland 4 articles published in JoVE Genetics Exercise Test for Evaluation of the Functional Efficacy of the Pig Cardiovascular System Anni Määttä*1, Niko Järveläinen*1, Jaakko Lampela1, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala1,2 1A.I. Virtanen Institute, University of Eastern Finland, 2Heart Center and Gene Therapy Unit, Kuopio University Hospital The present protocol describes a large animal exercise test model to assess the functional capacity of the cardiovascular system for evaluating the efficiency of new therapies in the preclinical setting. It is comparable to a clinical exercise test. Medicine Large Animal Model for Evaluating the Efficacy of the Gene Therapy in Ischemic Heart Henna Korpela1, Satu Siimes1, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala1 1A.I. Virtanen Institute, University of Eastern Finland Myocardial gene therapy for ischemic heart disease holds great promise for future therapeutics. Here, we introduce a large animal model for evaluating the efficacy of gene therapy in the ischemic heart. Neuroscience A Magnetic Resonance Imaging Protocol for Stroke Onset Time Estimation in Permanent Cerebral Ischemia Bryony L. McGarry*1, Kimmo T. Jokivarsi*2, Michael J. Knight1, Olli H.J. Grohn2, Risto A. Kauppinen1 1School of Experimental Psychology and Clinical Research and Imaging Center Bristol, University of Bristol, 2Department of Neurobiology, A.I. Virtanen Institute, University of Eastern Finland A protocol for stroke onset time estimation in a rat model of stroke exploiting quantitative magnetic resonance imaging (qMRI) parameters is described. The procedure exploits diffusion MRI for delineation of the acute stroke lesion and quantitative T1 and T2 (qT1 and qT2) relaxation times for timing of stroke. Behavior Flat-floored Air-lifted Platform: A New Method for Combining Behavior with Microscopy or Electrophysiology on Awake Freely Moving Rodents Mikhail Kislin1, Ekaterina Mugantseva1, Dmitry Molotkov1, Natalia Kulesskaya1, Stanislav Khirug1, Ilya Kirilkin2, Evgeny Pryazhnikov1,2, Julia Kolikova2, Dmytro Toptunov2, Mikhail Yuryev1, Rashid Giniatullin3, Vootele Voikar4, Claudio Rivera1, Heikki Rauvala1, Leonard Khiroug1 1Neuroscience Center, University of Helsinki, 2Neurotar LTD, 3A. I. Virtanen Institute for Molecular Sciences, University of Eastern Finland, 4Laboratory Animal Center, University of Helsinki This method creates a tangible, familiar environment for the mouse to navigate and explore during microscopic imaging or single-cell electrophysiological recordings, which require firm fixation of the animal’s head.