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Targeted Training of Ultrasonic Vocalizations in Aged and Parkinsonian Rats

Voice deficits are a common complication of both Parkinson disease (PD) and aging; they can significantly diminish quality of life by impacting communication abilities. (1, 2) Targeted training (speech/voice therapy) can improve specific voice deficits,(3, 4) although the underlying mechanisms of be...

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Autores principales: Johnson, Aaron M., Doll, Emerald J., Grant, Laura M., Ringel, Lauren, Shier, Jaime N., Ciucci, Michelle R.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MyJove Corporation 2011
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3211124/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21847085
http://dx.doi.org/10.3791/2835
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author Johnson, Aaron M.
Doll, Emerald J.
Grant, Laura M.
Ringel, Lauren
Shier, Jaime N.
Ciucci, Michelle R.
author_facet Johnson, Aaron M.
Doll, Emerald J.
Grant, Laura M.
Ringel, Lauren
Shier, Jaime N.
Ciucci, Michelle R.
author_sort Johnson, Aaron M.
collection PubMed
description Voice deficits are a common complication of both Parkinson disease (PD) and aging; they can significantly diminish quality of life by impacting communication abilities. (1, 2) Targeted training (speech/voice therapy) can improve specific voice deficits,(3, 4) although the underlying mechanisms of behavioral interventions are not well understood. Systematic investigation of voice deficits and therapy should consider many factors that are difficult to control in humans, such as age, home environment, age post-onset of disease, severity of disease, and medications. The method presented here uses an animal model of vocalization that allows for systematic study of how underlying sensorimotor mechanisms change with targeted voice training. The ultrasonic recording and analysis procedures outlined in this protocol are applicable to any investigation of rodent ultrasonic vocalizations. The ultrasonic vocalizations of rodents are emerging as a valuable model to investigate the neural substrates of behavior.(5-8) Both rodent and human vocalizations carry semiotic value and are produced by modifying an egressive airflow with a laryngeal constriction.(9, 10) Thus, rodent vocalizations may be a useful model to study voice deficits in a sensorimotor context. Further, rat models allow us to study the neurobiological underpinnings of recovery from deficits with targeted training. To model PD we use Long-Evans rats (Charles River Laboratories International, Inc.) and induce parkinsonism by a unilateral infusion of 7 μg of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) into the medial forebrain bundle which causes moderate to severe degeneration of presynaptic striatal neurons (for details see Ciucci, 2010).(11, 12) For our aging model we use the Fischer 344/Brown Norway F1 (National Institute on Aging). Our primary method for eliciting vocalizations is to expose sexually-experienced male rats to sexually receptive female rats. When the male becomes interested in the female, the female is removed and the male continues to vocalize. By rewarding complex vocalizations with food or water, both the number of complex vocalizations and the rate of vocalizations can be increased (Figure 1). An ultrasonic microphone mounted above the male's home cage records the vocalizations. Recording begins after the female rat is removed to isolate the male calls. Vocalizations can be viewed in real time for training or recorded and analyzed offline. By recording and acoustically analyzing vocalizations before and after vocal training, the effects of disease and restoration of normal function with training can be assessed. This model also allows us to relate the observed behavioral (vocal) improvements to changes in the brain and neuromuscular system.
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spelling pubmed-32111242011-11-14 Targeted Training of Ultrasonic Vocalizations in Aged and Parkinsonian Rats Johnson, Aaron M. Doll, Emerald J. Grant, Laura M. Ringel, Lauren Shier, Jaime N. Ciucci, Michelle R. J Vis Exp Neuroscience Voice deficits are a common complication of both Parkinson disease (PD) and aging; they can significantly diminish quality of life by impacting communication abilities. (1, 2) Targeted training (speech/voice therapy) can improve specific voice deficits,(3, 4) although the underlying mechanisms of behavioral interventions are not well understood. Systematic investigation of voice deficits and therapy should consider many factors that are difficult to control in humans, such as age, home environment, age post-onset of disease, severity of disease, and medications. The method presented here uses an animal model of vocalization that allows for systematic study of how underlying sensorimotor mechanisms change with targeted voice training. The ultrasonic recording and analysis procedures outlined in this protocol are applicable to any investigation of rodent ultrasonic vocalizations. The ultrasonic vocalizations of rodents are emerging as a valuable model to investigate the neural substrates of behavior.(5-8) Both rodent and human vocalizations carry semiotic value and are produced by modifying an egressive airflow with a laryngeal constriction.(9, 10) Thus, rodent vocalizations may be a useful model to study voice deficits in a sensorimotor context. Further, rat models allow us to study the neurobiological underpinnings of recovery from deficits with targeted training. To model PD we use Long-Evans rats (Charles River Laboratories International, Inc.) and induce parkinsonism by a unilateral infusion of 7 μg of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) into the medial forebrain bundle which causes moderate to severe degeneration of presynaptic striatal neurons (for details see Ciucci, 2010).(11, 12) For our aging model we use the Fischer 344/Brown Norway F1 (National Institute on Aging). Our primary method for eliciting vocalizations is to expose sexually-experienced male rats to sexually receptive female rats. When the male becomes interested in the female, the female is removed and the male continues to vocalize. By rewarding complex vocalizations with food or water, both the number of complex vocalizations and the rate of vocalizations can be increased (Figure 1). An ultrasonic microphone mounted above the male's home cage records the vocalizations. Recording begins after the female rat is removed to isolate the male calls. Vocalizations can be viewed in real time for training or recorded and analyzed offline. By recording and acoustically analyzing vocalizations before and after vocal training, the effects of disease and restoration of normal function with training can be assessed. This model also allows us to relate the observed behavioral (vocal) improvements to changes in the brain and neuromuscular system. MyJove Corporation 2011-08-08 /pmc/articles/PMC3211124/ /pubmed/21847085 http://dx.doi.org/10.3791/2835 Text en Copyright © 2011, Journal of Visualized Experiments http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visithttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/
spellingShingle Neuroscience
Johnson, Aaron M.
Doll, Emerald J.
Grant, Laura M.
Ringel, Lauren
Shier, Jaime N.
Ciucci, Michelle R.
Targeted Training of Ultrasonic Vocalizations in Aged and Parkinsonian Rats
title Targeted Training of Ultrasonic Vocalizations in Aged and Parkinsonian Rats
title_full Targeted Training of Ultrasonic Vocalizations in Aged and Parkinsonian Rats
title_fullStr Targeted Training of Ultrasonic Vocalizations in Aged and Parkinsonian Rats
title_full_unstemmed Targeted Training of Ultrasonic Vocalizations in Aged and Parkinsonian Rats
title_short Targeted Training of Ultrasonic Vocalizations in Aged and Parkinsonian Rats
title_sort targeted training of ultrasonic vocalizations in aged and parkinsonian rats
topic Neuroscience
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3211124/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21847085
http://dx.doi.org/10.3791/2835
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