Differences in BTBR T+tf/J and C56BL/6J mice in various social behavioural paradigms

Faassen, C.T. van (2017) Differences in BTBR T+tf/J and C56BL/6J mice in various social behavioural paradigms. Master's Thesis / Essay, Biology.

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Abstract

Mental disorders are still as prevalent as they were a decade ago. There have been no breakthroughs regarding new drugs for these disorders. The PSRISM project aims to find new biomarkers for mental disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, major depressive disorder and schizophrenia, by looking at a shared symptom: social withdrawal. In this study, we aim at validating a social behavioural testing battery directed at screening for social withdrawal. To accomplish this, we make use of an animal model that is commonly used in autism research, the BTBR T+tf/J (BTBR) mouse. This mouse is known to show reduced amounts of sociability. We used it to verify certain social behavioural tests, the three-chamber test, social conditioned place preference test, social discrimination task and a resident intruder test. BTBR mice displayed similar sociability in the three-chamber test as the C57BL/6J (B6) control mice. BTBR did not show associative memory in the social conditioned place preference test, whereas the control did. Both BTBR and the control did not show a preference for a novel mouse in the social discrimination task. In the resident intruder test the BTBR test group was split in high aggressive mice and low aggressive mice. Later in the behaviour analyses the high aggressive BTBR showed aberrant aggressive behaviour by displaying a highly reduced amount of threats preceding an attack. Overall our test battery provides a way to screen different aspects of social behaviour and to identify which of these aspects cause the deviating social behaviour.

Item Type:	Thesis (Master's Thesis / Essay)
Degree programme:	Biology
Thesis type:	Master's Thesis / Essay
Language:	English
Date Deposited:	15 Feb 2018 08:33
Last Modified:	15 Feb 2018 08:33
URI:	https://fse.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/16092

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