Gait Analysis in Normal and Spinal Contused Mice Using the TreadScan System
- 1 November 2009
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Mary Ann Liebert Inc in Journal of Neurotrauma
- Vol. 26 (11), 2045-2056
- https://doi.org/10.1089/neu.2009.0914
Abstract
Advances in spinal cord injury (SCI) research are dependent on quality animal models, which in turn rely on sensitive outcome measures able to detect functional differences in animals following injury. To date, most measurements of dysfunction following SCI rely either on the subjective rating of observers or the slow throughput of manual gait assessment. The present study compares the gait of normal and contusion-injured mice using the TreadScan® system. TreadScan utilizes a transparent treadmill belt and a high-speed camera to capture the footprints of animals and automatically analyze gait characteristics. Adult female C57Bl/6 mice were introduced to the treadmill prior to receiving either a standardized mild, moderate, or sham contusion spinal cord injury. TreadScan gait analyses were performed weekly for 10 weeks and compared with scores on the Basso Mouse Scale (BMS). Results indicate that this software successfully differentiates sham animals from injured animals on a number of gait characteristics, including hindlimb swing time, stride length, toe spread, and track width. Differences were found between mild and moderate contusion injuries, indicating a high degree of sensitivity within the system. Rear track width, a measure of the animal's hindlimb base of support, correlated strongly both with spared white matter percentage and with terminal BMS. TreadScan allows for an objective and rapid behavioral assessment of locomotor function following mild-moderate contusive SCI, where the majority of mice still exhibit hindlimb weight support and plantar paw placement during stepping.Keywords
This publication has 35 references indexed in Scilit:
- Anatomical and Functional Outcomes following a Precise, Graded, Dorsal Laceration Spinal Cord Injury in C57BL/6 MiceJournal of Neurotrauma, 2009
- Spinal Cord Contusion Based on Precise Vertebral Stabilization and Tissue Displacement Measured by Combined Assessment to Discriminate Small Functional DifferencesJournal of Neurotrauma, 2008
- Matrix Metalloproteinase-2 Facilitates Wound Healing Events That Promote Functional Recovery after Spinal Cord InjuryJournal of Neuroscience, 2006
- Optimization of a mouse locomotor rating system to evaluate compression-induced spinal cord injury: correlation of locomotor and morphological injury indicesJournal of Neurosurgery: Spine, 2006
- Galanin over-expression decreases the development of neuropathic pain-like behaviors in mice after partial sciatic nerve injuryBrain Research, 2004
- Behavioral and Histological Outcomes Following Graded Spinal Cord Contusion Injury in the C57Bl/6 MouseExperimental Neurology, 2001
- Gait Analysis in the MousePhysiology & Behavior, 1999
- A Sensitive and Reliable Locomotor Rating Scale for Open Field Testing in RatsJournal of Neurotrauma, 1995
- Why cats pace on the treadmillPhysiology & Behavior, 1993
- Stride Characteristics of Overground versus Treadmill Locomotion in the Saddle HorseCells Tissues Organs, 1993