A virtual burrow assay for head-fixed mice measures habituation, discrimination, exploration and avoidance without training

Andrew Jp Fink; Richard Axel; Carl E Schoonover

doi:10.7554/eLife.45658

A virtual burrow assay for head-fixed mice measures habituation, discrimination, exploration and avoidance without training

Elife. 2019 Apr 17:8:e45658. doi: 10.7554/eLife.45658.

Authors

Andrew Jp Fink^#¹, Richard Axel¹, Carl E Schoonover^#¹

Affiliation

¹ Department of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Columbia University, New York, United States.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

We have designed an assay that measures approach and avoidance behaviors in head-fixed mice at millisecond timescale, is compatible with standard electrophysiological and optical methods for measuring neuronal activity, and requires no training. The Virtual Burrow Assay simulates a scenario in which a mouse, poised at the threshold of its burrow, evaluates whether to exit the enclosure or to retreat inside. The assay provides a sensitive readout of habituation, discrimination and exploration, as well as avoidance of both conditioned and innately aversive cues.

Keywords: exploration; fear conditioning; habituation; head-fixed behavior; mouse; neuroscience; sensory discrimination; virtual burrow assay.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Avoidance Learning*
Behavior, Animal*
Exploratory Behavior
Habituation, Psychophysiologic
Mice

Grants and funding

The funders had no role in study design, data collection and interpretation, or the decision to submit the work for publication.