A Device Network for Operant Conditioning in the Assessment of Alzheimer's Disease in Mice

Описание

Neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, are characterized by pronounced cognitive impairments, necessitating the development of accurate and reproducible models for preclinical studies. This work presents the development and validation of a network of devices for operant conditioning, designed to assess the cognitive abilities of mice under standard housing conditions.
The proposed system forms a cluster of individual devices connected via a USB interface into a unified network. Each device operates autonomously and continuously monitors behavioral responses in real time, enabling the parallel collection of high-resolution data from a large number of subjects without restricting their freedom of movement. Two types of operant tasks were implemented: cue-guided choice, where a mouse must respond to an illuminated port to receive a food reward, and lever activation, requiring the mouse to press a lever to obtain reinforcement. These tasks assess learning processes, decision-making capabilities, motivation, and motor-cognitive coordination.
The experimental model involved two groups of male BALB/c mice: a control group and a group with an induced model of Alzheimer's disease through the injection of beta-amyloid aggregates into the hippocampus. The developed device network offers a sensitive and scalable approach for quantitative assessment of cognitive impairments and motor functions. It holds strong potential for standardized preclinical validation of novel therapeutic strategies targeting neurodegenerative diseases.

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