Quantitative Assessment of Anti-Gravity Reflexes to Evaluate Vestibular Dysfunction in Rats.

ABSTRACT: The tail-lift reflex and the air-righting reflex are anti-gravity reflexes in rats that depend on vestibular function. To obtain objective and quantitative measures of performance, we recorded these reflexes with slow-motion video in two experiments. In the first experiment, vestibular dysfunction was elicited by acute exposure to 0 (control), 400, 600, or 1000 mg/kg of 3,3'-iminodipropionitrile (IDPN), which causes dose-dependent hair cell degeneration. In the second, rats were exposed to sub-chronic IDPN in the drinking water for 0 (control), 4, or 8 weeks; this causes reversible or irreversible loss of vestibular function depending on exposure time. In the tail-lift test, we obtained the minimum angle defined during the lift and descent maneuver by the nose, the back of the neck, and th

SUBMITTER: Martins-Lopes V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6962417 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature