scholarly journals Reinventing the wheel: comparison of two wheel cage styles for assessing mouse voluntary running activity

2018 ◽  
Vol 124 (4) ◽  
pp. 923-929
Author(s):  
T. Seward ◽  
B. D. Harfmann ◽  
K. A. Esser ◽  
E. A. Schroder
Keyword(s):  
Wheel Running ◽  
Voluntary Wheel Running ◽  
Average Speed ◽  
Running Activity ◽  
Wheel Running Activity ◽  
Voluntary Running ◽  
Rapid Changes ◽  
Switch Mechanism ◽  
Mouse Activity ◽  
Voluntary Wheel

Voluntary wheel cage assessment of mouse activity is commonly employed in exercise and behavioral research. Currently, no standardization for wheel cages exists resulting in an inability to compare results among data from different laboratories. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the distance run or average speed data differ depending on the use of two commonly used commercially available wheel cage systems. Two different wheel cages with structurally similar but functionally different wheels (electromechanical switch vs. magnetic switch) were compared side-by-side to measure wheel running data differences. Other variables, including enrichment and cage location, were also tested to assess potential impacts on the running wheel data. We found that cages with the electromechanical switch had greater inherent wheel resistance and consistently led to greater running distance per day and higher average running speed. Mice rapidly, within 1–2 days, adapted their running behavior to the type of experimental switch used, suggesting these running differences are more behavioral than due to intrinsic musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, or metabolic limits. The presence of enrichment or location of the cage had no detectable impact on voluntary wheel running. These results demonstrate that mice run differing amounts depending on the type of cage and switch mechanism used and thus investigators need to report wheel cage type/wheel resistance and use caution when interpreting distance/speed run across studies. NEW & NOTEWORTHY The results of this study highlight that mice will run different distances per day and average speed based on the inherent resistance present in the switch mechanism used to record data. Rapid changes in running behavior for the same mouse in the different cages demonstrate that a strong behavioral factor contributes to classic exercise outcomes in mice. Caution needs to be taken when interpreting mouse voluntary wheel running activity to include potential behavioral input and physiological parameters.

ONTOGENIES IN MICE SELECTED FOR HIGH VOLUNTARY WHEEL-RUNNING ACTIVITY. I. MEAN ONTOGENIES

Evolution ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 57 (3) ◽  
pp. 646-657 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodore J. Morgan ◽  
Theodore Garland ◽  
Patrick A. Carter
Keyword(s):  
Wheel Running ◽  
Voluntary Wheel Running ◽  
Running Activity ◽  
Wheel Running Activity ◽  
Voluntary Wheel

scholarly journals Chronic Sciatic Neuropathy in Rat Reduces Voluntary Wheel-Running Activity With Concurrent Chronic Mechanical Allodynia

2017 ◽  
Vol 124 (1) ◽  
pp. 346-355 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan A. Whitehead ◽  
Nicholas L. Lam ◽  
Melody S. Sun ◽  
Joshua Sanchez ◽  
Shahani Noor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mechanical Allodynia ◽  
Wheel Running ◽  
Voluntary Wheel Running ◽  
Sciatic Neuropathy ◽  
Running Activity ◽  
Wheel Running Activity ◽  
Voluntary Wheel

Introduction Of A High-fat/sucrose Diet Modulates Voluntary Wheel Running Activity In Adult Female Rats

2017 ◽  
Vol 49 (5S) ◽  
pp. 440
Author(s):  
Jon-Philippe K. Hyatt ◽  
Lindsay Caprio ◽  
Elisa J. Bienenstock ◽  
Jung A. Kim ◽  
Gary E. McCall
Keyword(s):  
Adult Female ◽  
Wheel Running ◽  
Female Rats ◽  
High Fat ◽  
Voluntary Wheel Running ◽  
Running Activity ◽  
Wheel Running Activity ◽  
Sucrose Diet ◽  
Voluntary Wheel

Artificial selection for increased wheel-running activity in house mice results in decreased body mass at maturity

1999 ◽  
Vol 202 (18) ◽  
pp. 2513-2520 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.G. Swallow ◽  
P. Koteja ◽  
P.A. Carter ◽  
T. Garland
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Correlation ◽  
Body Mass ◽  
Artificial Selection ◽  
Wheel Running ◽  
House Mice ◽  
Selected Lines ◽  
Voluntary Wheel Running ◽  
Running Activity ◽  
Wheel Running Activity ◽  
Voluntary Wheel

To test the hypothesis that body size and activity levels are negatively genetically correlated, we conducted an artificial selection experiment for increased voluntary wheel-running activity in house mice (Mus domesticus). Here, we compare body masses of mice from control and selected lines after 14 generations of selection. In both groups, beginning at weaning and then for 8 weeks, we housed half of the individuals with access to running wheels that were free to rotate and the other half with wheels that were locked to prevent rotation. Mice from selected lines were more active than controls at weaning (21 days) and across the experiment (total revolutions during last week: females 2.5-fold higher, males 2.1-fold higher). At weaning, mice from selected and control lines did not differ significantly in body mass. At 79 days of age, mice from selected lines weighed 13.6 % less than mice from control lines, whereas mice with access to free wheels weighed 4.5 % less than ‘sedentary’ individuals; both effects were statistically significant and additive. Within the free-wheel-access group, individual variation in body mass of males was negatively correlated with amount of wheel-running during the last week (P<0.01); for females, the relationship was also negative but not statistically significant (P>0.40). The narrow-sense genetic correlation between wheel-running and body mass after 8 weeks of wheel access was estimated to be −0. 50. A negative genetic correlation could account for the negative relationship between voluntary wheel-running and body mass that has been reported across 13 species of muroid rodents.

scholarly journals Does voluntary wheel running exist in Neotropical wild mammals?

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter van Lunteren ◽  
Marnix A. Groenewold ◽  
Gabor Pozsgai ◽  
Joseph Sarvary
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Environmental Enrichment ◽  
Wheel Running ◽  
Lower Probability ◽  
Wild Animals ◽  
Voluntary Wheel Running ◽  
Running Activity ◽  
Wheel Running Activity ◽  
Running Wheels ◽  
Voluntary Wheel

AbstractRunning wheels are frequently used to improve the welfare of captive animals, increase environmental enrichment, and, by doing so, reduce stereotypic behaviors. It is, however, still debated whether or not wheel running itself is a stereotypy. New evidence emerged when Meijer and Robbers (2014, Proc. Royal Soc. B) reported voluntary wheel running of wild animals in the Netherlands. Since stereotypic behaviors are exclusively attributed to captive animals, the occurrence of wheel running in the wild suggests that this behavior is non-stereotypic. Our study explores that same line of investigation, examining whether wild animals will voluntarily use running wheels in a natural area in Paraguay in comparison to the urban and semi-urban settings in the Netherlands. Of the 1857 small mammal visits we recorded, only two occasions showed evidence of what could be considered as wheel running behavior; over hundredfold fewer than previously reported. The potential reasons for the observed difference in wheel running activity, such as different species pool or seasonality, are discussed. The difference, however, is likely to be due to the much lower probability of Neotropical mammals in a remote natural site encountering man-made objects and experiencing urbanization-related behavioral patterns. Additionally, in the light of our findings, we review the definition of wheel running as a stereotypic behavior.

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