18th International Mouse Genome Conference
17-22 October 2004, Seattle, USA
Plenary Presentations * Oral
Presentations * Poster
Abstracts * Photos
Verne Chapman Memorial Lecture * Table
of Contents * Attendees * Awards
POSTER 126 - EUMORPHIA: PHENOTYPING BEHAVIOUR AND COGNITION IN MICE
Tucci V, Auwerx J, Brown S, Chambon P, Coghill E, Gale K, Golini E, Hölter SM, Jacquot S, Krezel W, Lad H, Mandillo S, Marazziti D, Meziane H, Nolan PM, Ouagazzal A, Parker A, Pedersen V, Rosenthal N, Tocchini-Valentini G, Wurst W
1 MRC, Harwell, United Kingdom, 2 ICS, Strasbourg, France, 3 EMBL, Monterotondo, Italy, 4 CNR, Monterotondo, Italy, 5 GSF, Munich, Germany, 6 EMBL, Monterotondo, Italy
EUMORPHIA is a European Consortium focused on the development of new approaches in phenotyping, mutagenesis and informatics leading to improved characterisation of mouse models for the understanding of human physiology and disease.
European mouse geneticists with different and varied expertise are working together in order to provide the scientific community with a platform for the systematic and standardised phenotyping of mouse models. Eumorphia members from different centres are grouped into workpackages (WP), each dealing with a set of specific body systems. Workpackage 10, responsible for behaviour and cognition phenotyping, identified a high-throughput battery of 9 primary tests to be included in the first-line screen. These tests are: open field, modified SHIRPA, grip strength assessment, rotarod assessment, y-maze spontaneous alternation, pre-pulse inhibition of acoustic startle response, tail flick test, tail suspension test, and swim ability assessment. Here we will present and compare data obtained on four inbred strains (C57Bl/6J, C3HeB/FeJ, BALB/cByJ, 129S2/SvPas) and across all participating centres. From our preliminary analysis we can define the robustness and limits for each test.
To deeply characterize those aspects of behaviour that require more complex procedures we will discuss the ongoing work on the development of secondary screening protocols. A description of some important features of the specific analysis of cognition phenotyping and the use of new algorithms will be discussed.