Non-aversive Animal Restraint Enabling Recording of Optomotor Reflex in Ground Squirrels.

ABSTRACT: The optomotor reflex (OMR) provides a behavioral assessment of an animal's contrast sensitivity and visual acuity. Mice or rats are typically placed directly onto a small circular platform by hand; however, handling animals like this can stimulate stress and anxiety, which introduce confounding factors when interpreting data. It has been shown that non-aversive handling methods, such as picking up mice or rats in a familiar tunnel/tube, can reduce anxiety. This is of particular interest in studies where animals display heightened stress, overactivity, or motor dysfunction, resulting in an inability to stay on the platform. A team led by Drs. Kiyoharu J. Miyagishima and Francisco M. Nadal-Nicolás have redesigned the conventional OMR platform to provide semi-closed containment. This makes it

SUBMITTER: Miyagishima KJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12403201 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature