Behavioral assessments of auditory sensitivity in transgenic mice

This report summarizes positive reinforcement conditioning procedures for assessing sensory function in transgenic mice. To illustrate these behavioral methods auditory sensitivity was measured in mice lacking α9 acetylcholine receptor subunits ( α9 knock-out mice). These receptors are known to play...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of neuroscience methods 2000-04, Vol.97 (1), p.59-67
Main Authors: Prosen, Cynthia A, Bath, Kevin G, Vetter, Douglas E, May, Bradford J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acetylcholine receptors
Acoustic Stimulation
Animals
Auditory behavior
Auditory Threshold - physiology
Behavior, Animal - physiology
Biological and medical sciences
Conditioning, Operant - physiology
Exploratory Behavior - physiology
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Hearing - genetics
Hearing - physiology
Hearing sensitivity
Learning. Memory
Mice
Mice, Knockout
Mice, Transgenic
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Psychometrics
Receptors, Cholinergic - drug effects
Receptors, Cholinergic - genetics
Software
Transgenic mice
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Summary:This report summarizes positive reinforcement conditioning procedures for assessing sensory function in transgenic mice. To illustrate these behavioral methods auditory sensitivity was measured in mice lacking α9 acetylcholine receptor subunits ( α9 knock-out mice). These receptors are known to play an important role in the efferent pathways that modify cochlear responses to sound stimuli. The strategies of parameter manipulation that led these subjects through their preliminary training stages to stable threshold performances are described in detail. Techniques for estimating and interpreting sensory thresholds are discussed from the perspective of signal detection analyses. This study found no significant differences between α9 knock-out mice and control subjects when hearing thresholds were measured under quiet conditions, as predicted by previous behavioral and electrophysiological evidence.
ISSN:0165-0270
1872-678X
DOI:10.1016/S0165-0270(00)00169-2