Key Points
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The advantages of the mouse for behavioural studies are the extensive genetic technologies that are available for this species and its elaborate behavioural repertoire, which can be used to create models of human disease.
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The ability to manipulate the mouse genome allows researchers to investigate the cellular and molecular bases of behaviour by using electrophysiological, biochemical and/or cellular approaches to study mice with behavioural phenotypes.
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Defining causal relationships between specific behaviours and the electrophysiological, biochemical, cellular and/or neuropathological mechanisms that underlie them is hampered by several important factors, such as pleiotropy, genetic background and environmental effects, and by issues of experimental design.
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A combination of genetic approaches is needed to identify genes that underlie behaviour in the mouse. These include reverse genetic approaches — such as gene targeting, the conditional inactivation or activation of transgenes, and gene-trapping — and forward genetic approaches — such as ENU mutagenesis and quantitative trait analysis.
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Mutant mice are phenotyped by testing them in different behavioural paradigms, which can reveal the presence or absence of specific behaviours and allow them to be quantified.
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Many more mouse mutants with behavioural phenotypes will need to be isolated and more behavioural assays will need to be developed to determine whether genes exist that are dedicated to specific behaviours.
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Mouse mutants have shed light on the molecular mechanisms that underlie human disorders, as exemplified by the study of human sleep disorders, such as narcolepsy and familial advanced sleep-phase syndrome. They have also been used to investigate the mechanisms of action of certain therapeutics, such as those of the antipsychotic medications that are used to treat schizophrenia.
Abstract
Genetic studies in the mouse are important in the elucidation of molecular pathways that underlie behaviour. The advantages of the mouse for behavioural studies include an extensive array of genetic technologies and an elaborate behavioural repertoire that can be used to create models of human disease. This review discusses the relative advantages of forward and reverse genetic approaches to studying the genetic basis of behaviour in the mouse, and the complexities that behavioural studies need to address, such as phenotypic variability, genetic background effects and pleiotropy.
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Acknowledgements
We thank our colleagues, members of our laboratories and especially S. Poethig for helpful discussions and comments on the manuscript. We thank L. Maltais for help with the nomenclature. These studies were supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health and the Whitehall Foundation. T.A. is a Packard Fellow and a John Merck Scholar.
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Glossary
- LONG-TERM POTENTIATION
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A long-lasting increase in the efficacy of synaptic transmission, which is commonly elicited by high-frequency neuronal stimulation.
- ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPHY
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(EEG). This technique measures neural activity by monitoring electrical signals from the brain that reach the scalp. EEG has good temporal but relatively poor spatial resolution.
- PLEIOTROPY
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The phenomenon in which a single gene is responsible for several distinct and seemingly unrelated phenotypic effects.
- REVERSE GENETICS
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A genetic analysis that proceeds from genotype to phenotype by gene-manipulation techniques, such as homologous recombination in embryonic stem cells.
- CRE/LOXP
-
A site-specific recombination system derived from the Escherichia coli bacteriophage P1. Two short DNA sequences (loxP sites) are engineered to flank the target DNA. Activation of the Cre recombinase enzyme catalyses recombination between the loxP sites, which leads to the excision of the intervening sequence.
- STEROID-HORMONE-REGULATED CRE
-
Cre recombinase that has been engineered to contain mutated progesterone or oestrogen ligand-binding domains that are specifically bound by synthetic steroids. This binding allows Cre to be translocated to the nucleus.
- ALLELIC SERIES
-
An array of possible mutant forms of a gene, which usually causes multiple phenotypes.
- ORGAN OF CORTI
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The structure in the inner ear that contains receptor cells that are sensitive to sound vibrations.
- AMPULLA
-
A swelling at the base of the semicircular canals, which contains sensory cells that detect the movement of fluid inside the canals.
- QUANTITATIVE TRAIT
-
A measurable trait that depends on a single gene or on the cumulative action of many genes and the environment.
- QUANTITATIVE TRAIT LOCUS
-
(QTL). A genetic locus that is identified through the statistical analysis of complex traits (such as height or body weight). These traits are typically affected by more than one gene and also by the environment.
- ELECTROMYOGRAPHY
-
(EMG). A technique used to measure striated muscle activity by monitoring electrical signals from a surrounding group of muscles. In sleep studies, EMG activity, in combination with electroencephalography, determines behavioural states, wakefulness, rapid eye movement (REM) and non-REM sleep.
- FORWARD GENETICS
-
A genetic analysis that proceeds from phenotype to genotype by positional cloning or candidate-gene analysis.
- FEAR CONDITIONING
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A test to measure the ability of a rodent to learn and remember an association between an aversive experience and environmental cues. Learning and memory are assessed by scoring freezing behaviour in the presence of the cue or context.
- SENSORIMOTOR GATING
-
A behavioural trait in humans and animals that reflects the ability to filter out extraneous stimuli and to process information that comes in rapid succession.
- PREPULSE INHIBITION OF THE STARTLE RESPONSE
-
A behavioural test for sensorimotor gating. This task measures the level of attenuation of a startle response on presentation of a non-startle-inducing prepulse.
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Bućan, M., Abel, T. The mouse: genetics meets behaviour. Nat Rev Genet 3, 114–123 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrg728
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrg728
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