Use of Rotorod as a Method for the Qualitative Analysis of Walking in Rat
Summary
The rotorod test is used to assess motor status in the walking movement of hemi-Parkinson analogue rats.
Abstract
High speed videoanalysis of the details of movement can provide a source of information about qualitative aspects of walking movements. When walking on a rotorod, animals remain in approximately the same place making repetitive movements of stepping. Thus the task provides a rich source of information on the details of foot stepping movements. Subjects were hemi-Parkinson analogue rats, produced by injection of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) into the right nigrostriatal bundle to deplete nigrostriatal dopamine (DA). The present report provides a video analysis illustration of animals previously were filmed from frontal, lateral, and posterior views as they walked (15). Rating scales and frame-by-frame replay of the video records of stepping behavior indicated that the hemi-Parkinson rats were chronically impaired in posture and limb use contralateral to the DA-depletion. The contralateral limbs participated less in initiating and sustaining propulsion than the ipsilateral limbs. These deficits secondary to unilateral DA-depletion show that the rotorod provides a use task for the analysis of stepping movements.
Protocol
Discussion
The purpose of the present study was to examine whether the rotorod test for rodent locomotion skill can be used for the qualitative examination of posture, forelimb stepping and hind limb stepping in nervous system injured rats. For the analysis, rats with unilateral DA depletions and control rats were video recorded from front, lateral and posterior views. A rating scale of posture and forelimb movements indicated that stepping movements were chronically impaired following surgery. Examination of limb movements indicat…
Acknowledgements
Supported by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Canadian Stroke Network, and the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research.
References
- Chang, J. W., Wachtel, S. R., Young, D., Kang, U. J. Biochemical and anatomical characterization of forepaw adjusting steps in rat models of Parkinson’s disease: studies on medial forebrain bundle and striatal lesions. 신경과학. 88, 617-628 (1999).
- Metz, G. A., Tse, A., Ballermann, M., Smith, L. K., Fouad, K. The unilateral 6-OHDA rat model of Parkinson’s disease revisited: an electromyographic and behavioural analysis. Eur J Neurosci. 22, 735-744 (2005).
- Miklyaeva, E. I., Castaneda, E., Whishaw, I. Q. Skilled reaching deficits in unilateral dopamine-depleted rats: impairments in movement and posture and compensatory adjustments. J Neurosci. 14, 7148-7158 (1994).
- Miklyaeva, E. I., Martens, D. J., Whishaw, I. Q. Impairments and compensatory adjustments in spontaneous movement after unilateral dopamine depletion in rats. Brain Res. 68, 23-40 (1995).
- Morrissey, T. K., Pellis, S. M., Pellis, V. C., Teitelbaum, P. Seemingly paradoxical jumping in cataleptic haloperidol-treated rats is triggered by postural instability. Behav Brain Res. 35, 195-207 (1989).
- Muir, G. D., Whishaw, I. Q. Complete locomotor recovery following corticospinal tract lesions: measurement of ground reaction forces during overground locomotion in rats. Behav Brain Res. 103, 45-53 (1999).
- Muir, G. D., Whishaw, I. Q. Ground reaction forces in locomoting hemiparkinsonian rats: a definitive test for impairments and compensations. Exp Brain Res. 126, 307-314 (1999).
- M, O. l. s. s. o. n., Nikkhah, G., Bentlage, C., Bjorklund, A. Forelimb akinesia in the rat Parkinson model: differential effects of dopamine agonists and nigral transplants as assessed by a new stepping test. J Neurosci. 15, 3863-3875 (1995).
- Schallert, T., DeRyck, M., Whishaw, I. Q., Ramirez, V. D., Teitelbaum, P. Excessive bracing reactions and their control by atropine and LDOPA in an animal analog of Parkinsonism. Exp Neurol. 64, 33-43 (1979).
- Schallert, T., Norton, D., Jones, T. A. A clinically relevant unilateral rat model of Parkinsonian akinesia. J Neural Transpl Plasticity. 3, 332-333 (1992).
- Whishaw, I. Q., Gorny, B. Arpeggio and fractionated digit movements used in prehension by rats. Behav Brain Res. 60, 15-24 (1994).
- Whishaw, I. Q., O’Connor, W. T., Dunnett, S. B. The contributions of motor cortex, nigrostriatal dopamine and caudate-putamen to skilled forelimb use in the rat. Brain. 109, 805-843 (1986).
- Whishaw, I. Q., Pellis, S. M., Gorny, B., Kolb, B., Tetzlaff, W. Proximal and distal impairments in rat forelimb use in reaching follow unilateral pyramidal tract lesions. Behav Brain Res. 56, 59-76 (1993).
- Whishaw, I. Q., Woodward, N. C., Miklyaeva, E., Pellis, S. M. Analysis of limb use by control rats and unilateral DA-depleted rats in the Montoya staircase test: movements, impairments and compensatory strategies. Behav Brain Res. 89, 167-177 (1997).
