Environmental enrichment (EE) is a well-established concept that shows benefits for both brain development and cognitive function. However, rodents are commonly raised in poorly enriched conditions, which can affect neuroscience data. A study in Scientific Reports shows that providing EE to mice improves conditioned responses and motor performance. EE mice showed slower acquisition of eyeblink-conditioned responses compared with standard-housed mice, but with more precise timing to react to the conditioned stimulus after being fully trained. This more precise response could be explained by reduced anxiety resulting from EE. When testing motor performance, mice housed in both conditions showed comparable balance and strength, but enriched animals performed better on a Rotarod test, falling less. Similar findings were observed in the motor dysfunction ErasmusLadder test, where the enriched group showed better performance. These results show that providing EE, such as a running wheel, improves performance in mice. Such better performance can be explained by animals that have reduced anxiety responding better to a stressful environment, such as being forced to run in the Rotarod. EE can have a beneficial impact, reducing potential biases in neuroscience data.
Original reference: Dijkhuizen, S. et al. Sci. Rep. 14, 5962 (2024)
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution