Rubber tail illusion is weakened in Ca2+-dependent activator protein for secretion 2 (Caps2)-knockout mice

Body ownership is a fundamental aspect of self-consciousness. Illusion of body ownership is caused by updating body representation through multisensory integration. Synchronous visuotactile stimulation of a hand and rubber hand leads to illusory changes in body ownership in humans, but this is impai...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scientific reports 2019-05, Vol.9 (1), p.1-9, Article 7552
Main Authors: Wada, Makoto, Ide, Masakazu, Atsumi, Takeshi, Sano, Yoshitake, Shinoda, Yo, Furuichi, Teiichi, Kansaku, Kenji
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
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Animal models
Autism
Calcium
Humanities and Social Sciences
Information processing
multidisciplinary
Phenotypes
Response rates
Rodents
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Sensory integration
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Summary:Body ownership is a fundamental aspect of self-consciousness. Illusion of body ownership is caused by updating body representation through multisensory integration. Synchronous visuotactile stimulation of a hand and rubber hand leads to illusory changes in body ownership in humans, but this is impaired in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We previously reported that mice also exhibit body ownership illusion. With synchronous stroking of a tail and rubber tail, mice responded as if their own tails were being touched when the rubber tails were grasped (‘rubber tail illusion’). However, it remains unknown whether deficits in illusion of body ownership occur in mouse models of autism. Here, we examined whether the ‘rubber tail illusion’ occurred in Ca 2+ -dependent activator protein for secretion 2 - knockout ( Caps2 -KO) mice, which exhibit autistic-like phenotypes. During the synchronous stroking, response rates were significantly lower in Caps2 -KO mice than in wild-type mice. There were no significant differences between the response rates of wild-type and Caps2 -KO mice during the asynchronous stroking. The ‘rubber tail illusion’ was weak in Caps2 -KO mice, suggesting that Caps2 -KO mice experienced weaker visuotactile integration during the task. The rubber tail task will be a useful tool in mouse models of autism to evaluate atypical sensory processing.
ISSN:2045-2322
2045-2322
DOI:10.1038/s41598-019-43996-9