TY - JOUR
T1 - The attentional set shifting task
T2 - A measure of cognitive flexibility in mice
AU - Heisler, Jillian M.
AU - Morales, Juan
AU - Donegan, Jennifer J.
AU - Jett, Julianne D.
AU - Redus, Laney
AU - O'connor, Jason C.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© JoVE 2006-2015. All Rights Reserved.
Copyright:
Copyright 2015 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2015/2/4
Y1 - 2015/2/4
N2 - Cognitive impairment, particularly involving dysfunction of circuitry within the prefrontal cortex (PFC), represents a core feature of many neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders, including depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorder. Deficits in cognitive function also represent the most difficult symptom domain to successfully treat, as serotonin reuptake inhibitors and tricyclic antidepressants have only modest effects. Functional neuroimaging studies and postmortem analysis of human brain tissue implicate the PFC as being a primary region of dysregulation in patients with these disorders. However, preclinical behavioral assays used to assess these deficits in mouse models which can be readily manipulated genetically and could provide the basis for studies of new treatment avenues have been underutilized. Here we describe the adaptation of a behavioral assay, the attentional set shifting task (AST), to be performed in mice to assess prefrontal cortex mediated cognitive deficits. The neural circuits underlying behavior during the AST are highly conserved across humans, nonhuman primates and rodents, providing excellent face, construct and predictive validity.
AB - Cognitive impairment, particularly involving dysfunction of circuitry within the prefrontal cortex (PFC), represents a core feature of many neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders, including depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorder. Deficits in cognitive function also represent the most difficult symptom domain to successfully treat, as serotonin reuptake inhibitors and tricyclic antidepressants have only modest effects. Functional neuroimaging studies and postmortem analysis of human brain tissue implicate the PFC as being a primary region of dysregulation in patients with these disorders. However, preclinical behavioral assays used to assess these deficits in mouse models which can be readily manipulated genetically and could provide the basis for studies of new treatment avenues have been underutilized. Here we describe the adaptation of a behavioral assay, the attentional set shifting task (AST), to be performed in mice to assess prefrontal cortex mediated cognitive deficits. The neural circuits underlying behavior during the AST are highly conserved across humans, nonhuman primates and rodents, providing excellent face, construct and predictive validity.
KW - Attention
KW - Behavior
KW - Behavior
KW - Cognitive dysfunction
KW - Cognitive flexibility
KW - Issue 96
KW - Mouse
KW - Neuropsychiatric symptom
KW - Prefrontal cortex
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UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84923562884&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3791/51944
DO - 10.3791/51944
M3 - Article
C2 - 25741905
AN - SCOPUS:84923562884
JO - Journal of Visualized Experiments
JF - Journal of Visualized Experiments
SN - 1940-087X
IS - 96
M1 - e51944
ER -