Abstract
Ethological analyses of rodents are indispensable in current neuroscience research. Unlike traditional experimental rodents, prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster) are monogamous, preferring to huddle with their sociosexual partner rather than stranger voles. Partner preference in prairie voles is assessed using three transparent chambers. The right and left chambers are connected with the central chamber via hollow tubes. An opposite-sex partner vole is tethered to the right or left chamber, while a stranger vole is tethered to the other one. A subject prairie vole is placed in the central chamber and allowed to roam freely in the three chambers for 3h. Behaviors are recorded in a video recorder placed in front of the chambers. The duration to huddle with the partner and stranger voles is hand-scored in a blinded fashion. In this partner preference test, acrylic chambers and other materials are custom-made. Here, we describe detailed specification of these apparatuses. In addition, we mention protocols for cannula implantation and intracerebroventricular injection as well as a standard protocol of a passive avoidance test in prairie voles.
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