The Effects of Intermittent Training on Recovery of Fine Motor Control and Synaptic Plasticity in a Mouse Model
Submission Type
Event
Faculty Advisor
Emma M. Haan
Expected Graduation Date
2019
Location
Center for Natural Sciences, Illinois Wesleyan University
Start Date
4-13-2019 9:00 AM
End Date
4-13-2019 10:00 AM
Disciplines
Education
Abstract
Stroke is a leading cause of disability. Focused training of the impaired limb has been shown to improve its functional outcome in animal models. Yet, most human stroke survivors exhibit persistent motor deficits, likely due to differences in rehabilitation intensity between experimental (animal) and clinical (human) settings. The current study investigated the effect of training intensity on behavioral outcome and neural plasticity in a mouse model of stroke. After learning a skilled reaching task, mice received a unilateral stroke. Post-operatively, animals received either daily rehabilitative training, intermittent rehabilitative training (every other day), or no rehabilitative training. Assessment of the impaired limb illustrated that daily training resulted in significantly better performance than no training, while the intermittent group fell between the two. Analyses are underway investigating the impact of varying rehabilitation intensity on synapse density. Our results indicate that lower intensity training provides some behavioral advantages but is not as effective as daily training.
The Effects of Intermittent Training on Recovery of Fine Motor Control and Synaptic Plasticity in a Mouse Model
Center for Natural Sciences, Illinois Wesleyan University
Stroke is a leading cause of disability. Focused training of the impaired limb has been shown to improve its functional outcome in animal models. Yet, most human stroke survivors exhibit persistent motor deficits, likely due to differences in rehabilitation intensity between experimental (animal) and clinical (human) settings. The current study investigated the effect of training intensity on behavioral outcome and neural plasticity in a mouse model of stroke. After learning a skilled reaching task, mice received a unilateral stroke. Post-operatively, animals received either daily rehabilitative training, intermittent rehabilitative training (every other day), or no rehabilitative training. Assessment of the impaired limb illustrated that daily training resulted in significantly better performance than no training, while the intermittent group fell between the two. Analyses are underway investigating the impact of varying rehabilitation intensity on synapse density. Our results indicate that lower intensity training provides some behavioral advantages but is not as effective as daily training.