How to Use Rotarod to Do Rotarod Test for Mouse and Rats

How to Use Rotarod

The rotarod performance test is often used in combination with other motor tests, such as grip strength and suspension tests, to measure motor function, coordination and balance.
This rotarod test also can be used to assess motor deficits in the most common animal models of brain injury, ALS, Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and all models that require the study of motor coordination and function.
It also be used as a screening test for the effects or side effects of drugs on motor function.

In this article, we will introduce you how to use Biomed Rotarod to do rotarod test.

1. Rotarod Test Principle

In the rotarod performance test, a rodent is placed on a horizontally oriented, rotating rod. Due to the height of the rod, rodents will tend to remain on the rod as fear of falling. As it rotates, either at a constant or at an increasing speed, rodents are forced to run thus to remain on the rod.

Timing begins automatically when the motor is switched on and stops when the animal falls down to the floor of the Rotarod, as detected by the integrated infrared beam in the base. When the rodent falls off its cylinder section on to the plate below, the rotating time and the speed of falling will be recorded.

2.Rotarod Test Protocol

The Rotarod device consists of a central drive rod connected to a stepper motor. The stepper motor is connected with one 7-inch touch screen display control unit. The rod is a bar covered with a non-slippery surface containing a series of parallel longitudinal ridges, which enable the rodents to grasp it. The Rat and mouse one has its length of the rod. For Rat, there are 4 compartments while 6 for Mouse, each compartment is separated by acrylic walls, allowing the simultaneous testing of the corresponding number of animals. The infrared beam is integrated in the base of the Rotarod to detect the animal’s falling.

There are 8 protocol configurations can be set in the experiment for our Rotarod, with various mode like Constant, uniform acceleration, reverse ramp, custom ramp and rocking. Latency, Initial speed, Final speed, ACC speed, Drop speed, Revolution, Ramp, Rotating mode are directly achieved after the test.

Pre-training for the Rotarod

Animals should be habituated to the equipment to minimize anxiety and exploratory behaviors that may lead them to inadvertently fall off the rod.
After habituation to the testing room, animals are placed on a rotarod for training, three times per day for 3 consecutive days with an interval of at least 15 min between sessions on the same day. If an animal falls off the rod, it must be immediately placed back on the rod.

Test on the Rotarod

For Mouse, the rotating rod (3 cm in diameter) had 1 mm grips, and was positioned 20 cm above the instrument floor. For Rat, the rotating rod (6 cm in diameter) had 2 mm grips, and was positioned 30 cm above the instrument floor. After setting up all parameter or the protocol, start the test by placing the animals on the rod. The rotation speed of the rod was initially set to 4 rotations per min (rpm), and gradually increased by 7 rpm up to 40 rpm. Each trial is finished when the animal falls off the rod. The latency and rotation speed when the mice fell off the rod were recorded. Animals were trained at least two times per day. Results were the average over 3 trials.

Clean and sterilize the Rotarod between each animal tested.