Abstract
BackgroundThe elevated body swing test (EBST) is a behavioral test used to evaluate experimental stroke in rodents. The basic idea is that when the animal is suspended vertically by the tail, it will swing its head laterally to the left or right depending on lesion side. In a previous study from our lab using the EBST after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAo), rats swung contralateral to the infarct day 1 post-MCAo, but ipsilateral day 3 post-MCAo. This shift was unexpected and prompted us to perform the present study. First, the literature was systematically reviewed to elucidate whether a similar shift had been noticed before, and if consensus existed regarding swing direction. Secondly, an experiment was conducted to systematically investigate the suggested behavior. Eighty-three adult male and female Sprague–Dawley rats were subjected to MCAo or sham surgery and the EBST was performed up to 7 days after the lesion.ResultsBoth experimentally and through systematic literature review, the present study shows that the direction of biased swing activity in the EBST for rodents after cerebral ischemia can differ and even shift over time in some situations. The EBST curve for females was significantly different from that of males after the same occlusion time (p = 0.023).ConclusionsThis study highlights the importance of adequate reporting of behavioral tests for lateralization and it is concluded that the EBST cannot be recommended as a test for motor asymmetry after MCAo in rats.
Highlights
The elevated body swing test (EBST) is a behavioral test used to evaluate experimental stroke in rodents
Each paper was scanned for indications of a shift of main swing directions, similar to what was previously observed in our lab
The systematic review revealed that different articles reported diametrically different swing directions in the EBST after unilateral cerebral ischemia, emphasizing the confusion that exists regarding this test
Summary
The elevated body swing test (EBST) is a behavioral test used to evaluate experimental stroke in rodents. The literature was systematically reviewed to elucidate whether a similar shift had been noticed before, and if consensus existed regarding swing direction. Eighty-three adult male and female Sprague–Dawley rats were subjected to MCAo or sham surgery and the EBST was performed up to 7 days after the lesion. Among the tests used for evaluation of motor functions is the elevated body swing test (EBST). A similar procedure was described as early as 1979 [4], the test in its current form was developed 1995 by Borlongan and Sanberg as a test for asymmetrical motor behavior in an animal model of Parkinson’s disease [5]. The EBST was employed by the same research group
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