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Boele HJ, Jung C, Sherry S, Roggeveen LEM, Dijkhuizen S, Öhman J, Abraham E, Uvarov A, Boele CP, Gultig K, Rasmussen A, Vinueza-Veloz MF, Medina JF, Koekkoek SKE, De Zeeuw CI, Wang SSH. Accessible and reliable neurometric testing in humans using a smartphone platform. Sci Rep 2023; 13:22871. [PMID: 38129487 PMCID: PMC10739701 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-49568-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2023] [Accepted: 12/09/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Tests of human brain circuit function typically require fixed equipment in lab environments. We have developed a smartphone-based platform for neurometric testing. This platform, which uses AI models like computer vision, is optimized for at-home use and produces reproducible, robust results on a battery of tests, including eyeblink conditioning, prepulse inhibition of acoustic startle response, and startle habituation. This approach provides a scalable, universal resource for quantitative assays of central nervous system function.
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Affiliation(s)
- H J Boele
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton, USA.
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - C Jung
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton, USA
| | - S Sherry
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton, USA
| | - L E M Roggeveen
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - S Dijkhuizen
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - J Öhman
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - E Abraham
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton, USA
| | | | - C P Boele
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - K Gultig
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - A Rasmussen
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - M F Vinueza-Veloz
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Community Medicine and Global Health, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - J F Medina
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, USA
| | - S K E Koekkoek
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - C I De Zeeuw
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Royal Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - S S-H Wang
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton, USA.
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Ottenhoff MJ, Dijkhuizen S, Ypelaar ACH, de Oude NL, Koekkoek SKE, Wang SSH, De Zeeuw CI, Elgersma Y, Boele HJ. Cerebellum-dependent associative learning is not impaired in a mouse model of neurofibromatosis type 1. Sci Rep 2022; 12:19041. [PMID: 36351971 PMCID: PMC9646701 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-21429-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2022] [Accepted: 09/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Individuals with Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) experience a high degree of motor problems. The cerebellum plays a pivotal role in motor functioning and the NF1 gene is highly expressed in cerebellar Purkinje cells. However, it is not well understood to what extent NF1 affects cerebellar functioning and how this relates to NF1 motor functioning. Therefore, we subjected global Nf1+/- mice to a cerebellum-dependent associative learning task, called Pavlovian eyeblink conditioning. Additionally, we assessed general motor function and muscle strength in Nf1+/- mice. To our surprise, we found that Nf1+/- mice showed a moderately increased learning rate of conditioned eyeblink responses, as well as improved accuracy in the adaptive timing of the eyeblink responses. Locomotion, balance, general motor function, and muscle strength were not affected in Nf1+/- mice. Together, our results support the view that cerebellar function in Nf1+/- mice is unimpaired.
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Affiliation(s)
- M J Ottenhoff
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3000 DR, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- The ENCORE Expertise Center for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, 3015GD, The Netherlands
| | - S Dijkhuizen
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3000 DR, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - A C H Ypelaar
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3000 DR, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - N L de Oude
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3000 DR, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - S K E Koekkoek
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3000 DR, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - S S-H Wang
- Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Washington Road, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - C I De Zeeuw
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3000 DR, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Royal Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, 1105 BA, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Y Elgersma
- The ENCORE Expertise Center for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, 3015GD, The Netherlands
- Department of Clinical Genetics, Erasmus MC, 3000 DR, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - H J Boele
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, 3000 DR, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
- Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Washington Road, Princeton, NJ, USA.
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Giovannucci A, Pnevmatikakis EA, Deverett B, Pereira T, Fondriest J, Brady MJ, Wang SSH, Abbas W, Parés P, Masip D. Automated gesture tracking in head-fixed mice. J Neurosci Methods 2017; 300:184-195. [PMID: 28728948 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2017.07.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2017] [Revised: 06/25/2017] [Accepted: 07/13/2017] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The preparation consisting of a head-fixed mouse on a spherical or cylindrical treadmill offers unique advantages in a variety of experimental contexts. Head fixation provides the mechanical stability necessary for optical and electrophysiological recordings and stimulation. Additionally, it can be combined with virtual environments such as T-mazes, enabling these types of recording during diverse behaviors. NEW METHOD In this paper we present a low-cost, easy-to-build acquisition system, along with scalable computational methods to quantitatively measure behavior (locomotion and paws, whiskers, and tail motion patterns) in head-fixed mice locomoting on cylindrical or spherical treadmills. EXISTING METHODS Several custom supervised and unsupervised methods have been developed for measuring behavior in mice. However, to date there is no low-cost, turn-key, general-purpose, and scalable system for acquiring and quantifying behavior in mice. RESULTS We benchmark our algorithms against ground truth data generated either by manual labeling or by simpler methods of feature extraction. We demonstrate that our algorithms achieve good performance, both in supervised and unsupervised settings. CONCLUSIONS We present a low-cost suite of tools for behavioral quantification, which serve as valuable complements to recording and stimulation technologies being developed for the head-fixed mouse preparation.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Giovannucci
- Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute, Simons Foundation, New York, NY, USA; Princeton Neuroscience Institute and Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA.
| | - E A Pnevmatikakis
- Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute, Simons Foundation, New York, NY, USA
| | - B Deverett
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute and Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA; Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
| | - T Pereira
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute and Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - J Fondriest
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute and Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA; Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
| | - M J Brady
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute and Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA; Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
| | - S S-H Wang
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute and Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA; Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
| | - W Abbas
- Department of Computer Science, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
| | - P Parés
- Department of Computer Science, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
| | - D Masip
- Department of Computer Science, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
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