A Novel Running Wheel Mouse Model for Botulism and Its Use for the Evaluation of Postsymptom Antitoxin Efficacy.

ABSTRACT: Antitoxin is currently the only approved therapy for botulinum intoxications. The efficacy of antitoxin preparations is evaluated in animals. However, while in practice antitoxin is administered to patients only after symptom onset, in most animal studies, it is tested in relation to time postintoxication. This may be attributed to difficulties in quantitating early botulism symptoms in animals. In the current study, a novel system based on high-resolution monitoring of mouse activity on a running wheel was developed to allow evaluation of postsymptom antitoxin efficacy. The system enables automatic and remote monitoring of 48 mice simultaneously. Based on the nocturnal activity patterns of individual naive mice, two criteria were defined as the onset of symptoms. Postsymptom treatment wit

SUBMITTER: Schwartz A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8284437 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature