Elevated plus maze

Elevated plus maze
Schematic drawing of the Elevated Plus Maze setup for rats.
An elevated plus maze for mice

The elevated plus maze (EPM) is a rodent model of anxiety that is used as a screening test for putative anxiolytic or anxiogenic compounds and as a general research tool in neurobiological anxiety research.

Contents

Method

The test setting consists of a plus-shaped apparatus with two open and two enclosed arms, each with an open roof, elevated 40–70 cm from the floor. The model is based on rodents' aversion of open spaces. This aversion leads to the behavior termed thigmotaxis, which involves avoidance of open areas by confining movements to enclosed spaces or to the edges of a bounded space. In EPM this translates into a restriction of movement to the enclosed arms.[1][2][3][4]

Anxiety reduction in the plus-maze is indicated by an increase in the proportion of time spent in the open arms (time in open arms/total time in open or closed arms), and an increase in the proportion of entries into the open arms (entries into open arms/total entries into open or closed arms). Total number of arm entries and number of closed-arm entries are usually employed as measures of general activity (see[5]). The relation between the EPM and other tests of exploratory activity (open-field and emergence) have been analyzed in two mouse strains.[6]

Validity

While EPM is the most commonly employed behavioral animal anxiety model, there are several issues concerning the validity of the model. Classical clinical anxiolytics, such as benzodiazepines (e.g., Valium), do reduce measures of anxiety in EPM. However, more novel compounds, such as 5-HT1A agonists (e.g., Buspar) give mixed results. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and tricyclic antidepressants, which are commonly employed in clinical settings to treat anxiety disorders, also do not lead to a stable anxiolytic effect on EPM.[4] This raises the possibility that EPM is a suitable model for testing GABA-related compounds, such as benzodiazepines or direct GABAA agonists, but not for other drugs. Despite this, the model is commonly employed for screening putative anxiolytics and for general research into the brain mechanisms of anxiety,[7] because of the ease of employment and the vast number of studies already in the literature. An alternative explanation to the lack of correlation between this model and treatments for the purportedly related DSM-IV conditions is that the psychopharmacological paradigm relating to these conditions is flawed.

See Also

Morris water navigation task

References

  1. ^ Pellow S, Chopin P, File SE, Briley M. Validation of open:closed arm entries in an elevated plus-maze as a measure of anxiety in the rat. J Neurosci Methods 1985;14:149–67.
  2. ^ Treit D, Menard J, Royan C. Anxiogenic stimuli in the elevated plus-maze. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 1993;44:463–9.
  3. ^ Rodgers RJ. Animal models of anxiety: where next? Behav Pharmacol 1997;8:477–96.
  4. ^ a b Carobrez AP, Bertoglio LJ. Ethological and temporal analyses of anxiety-like behavior: the elevated plus-maze model 20 years on. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2005;29:1193–205.
  5. ^ Hogg S. A review of the validity and variability of the elevated plus-maze as an animal model of anxiety. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 1996;54:21–30.
  6. ^ Lalonde, R; Strazielle C (2008). "Relations between open-field, elevated plus-maze, and emergence tests as displayed by C57/BL6J and BALB/c mice.". Journal of Neuroscience Methods 171 (1): 48–52. PMID 18358538. 
  7. ^ Engin E, Treit D. The effects of intra-cerebral drug infusions on animals' unconditioned fear reactions: A systematic review. Prog Neuro-Psychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2008, doi:10.1016/j.pnpbp.2008.03.020

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Maze — Not to be confused with Maize. For other uses, see Maze (disambiguation). Part of a series on Puzzles …   Wikipedia

  • Nitrous oxide — N2O redirects here. For other uses, see N2O (disambiguation). Laughing gas redirects here. For other uses, see Laughing gas (disambiguation). Not to be confused with nitric oxide (formula NO) or nitrogen dioxide (formula NO2). For other uses, see …   Wikipedia

  • Morris water navigation task — Animal testing Main articles Animal testing Alternatives to animal testing Testing on …   Wikipedia

  • Open Field (animal test) — The Open Field Test (OFT) is an experiment used to assay general locomotor activity levels and anxiety in rodents in scientific research.[1] Experimental Design A Circular Open Field Developed by Calvin S. Hall to test emotionality of rodents …   Wikipedia

  • Coriandre — Coriandrum sativum …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Albizia julibrissin — Arbre à soie Albizia …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Coriande — Coriandre Coriandre …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Coriandrum sativum — Coriandre Coriandre …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Persil chinois — Coriandre Coriandre …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Anxiolytic — An anxiolytic (also antipanic or antianxiety agent[1]) is a drug used for the treatment of anxiety, and its related psychological and physical symptoms. Anxiolytics have been shown to be useful in the treatment of anxiety disorders. Beta receptor …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”