Are nests built for fun? Effects of alternative activities on nest-building by wild house mice

Barnett, S. A.; Hocking, William Ernest

doi:10.1016/s0163-1047(81)91098-0

Cited by 11 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Nesting is a natural behavior of mice associated with ‘activity of daily living’. With the exception of pregnancy and lactation, nesting is largely related to thermoregulation, but also with exploration and camouflage [19] – [21] . The WT mice and CaMKIIβ +/− mice built high quality nests with walls higher than the body of the mouse.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Generation and Behavior Characterization of CaMKIIβ Knockout Mice

Bachstetter

Webster

et al. 2014

PLoS ONE

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The calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) is abundant in the brain, where it makes important contributions to synaptic organization and homeostasis, including playing an essential role in synaptic plasticity and memory. Four genes encode isoforms of CaMKII (α, β, δ, γ), with CaMKIIα and CaMKIIβ highly expressed in the brain. Decades of molecular and cellular research, as well as the use of a large number of CaMKIIα mutant mouse lines, have provided insight into the pivotal roles of CaMKIIα in brain plasticity and cognition. However, less is known about the CaMKIIβ isoform. We report the development and extensive behavioral and phenotypic characterization of a CaMKIIβ knockout (KO) mouse. The CaMKIIβ KO mouse was found to be smaller at weaning, with an altered body mass composition. The CaMKIIβ KO mouse showed ataxia, impaired forelimb grip strength, and deficits in the rotorod, balance beam and running wheel tasks. Interestingly, the CaMKIIβ KO mouse exhibited reduced anxiety in the elevated plus maze and open field tests. The CaMKIIβ KO mouse also showed cognitive impairment in the novel object recognition task. Our results provide a comprehensive behavioral characterization of mice deficient in the β isoform of CaMKII. The neurologic phenotypes and the construction of the genotype suggest the utility of this KO mouse strain for future studies of CaMKIIβ in brain structure, function and development.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Generation and Behavior Characterization of CaMKIIβ Knockout Mice

Bachstetter

Webster

et al. 2014

PLoS ONE

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“…However, a large amount of nesting material does not necessarily equal a high quality, domelike nest (Wolfe and Barnett, 1977). In addition, many of the studies looking at the influence of temperature on nest building expose mice to temperatures around 20 1C (Lynch and Hegmann, 1972;Barnett et al, 1975;Barnett and Hocking, 1981). These temperatures are described as ''warm'' in the literature despite the fact that mice uniformly prefer temperatures warmer than 20 1C (Ogilvie and Stinson, 1966;Murakami and Kinoshita, 1978;Gordon et al, 1998;Gaskill et al, 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Working with what you’ve got: Changes in thermal preference and behavior in mice with or without nesting material

Gaskill

Rohr

Pajor

et al. 2011

Journal of Thermal Biology

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“…Measurement of the motivation of an animal to obtain a resource will be dependent on the alternatives offered, the elasticity for the demand will be greater when it is more substitutable for a commodity concurrently available (Lea and Roper, 1977;Barnett and Hocking, 1981). Sherwin and Nicol (1995) combined food-searching behaviour with the occurrence of natural obstacles (air stream, water or a narrow gap).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Strength of preference for nesting material as environmental enrichment for laboratory mice

Weerd

Loo

Zutphen

et al. 1998

Applied Animal Behaviour Science

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The present paper describes two experiments in which preferences of laboratory mice for materials which could serve as cage enrichment were investigated. In the first experiment, presence of nesting material (paper towel or tissue) and the presence of a nest box (perforated metal or clear perspex box) were tested against each other. On average, the 47 mice tested spent significantly more time in the cage with the nesting material (more than 69% of their total time, whereas less than 25% of their time in the cage with the nest box). In the second experiment, the preferred nesting material (tissues) was placed in a cage with a grid floor (previously found to be avoided) and the nest box (perforated metal) was placed in another cage, connected to the first, with a solid floor covered with sawdust bedding material. In this experiment, 24 female mice were tested and on average they spent more than 67% of their time in the cage with the nesting material, despite the presence of a grid floor. Thus, it is concluded that providing a cage with nesting material (in addition to bedding) may be essential for the well-being of laboratory mice. 0 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.

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Are nests built for fun? Effects of alternative activities on nest-building by wild house mice

Cited by 11 publications

References 18 publications

Generation and Behavior Characterization of CaMKIIβ Knockout Mice

Generation and Behavior Characterization of CaMKIIβ Knockout Mice

Working with what you’ve got: Changes in thermal preference and behavior in mice with or without nesting material

Strength of preference for nesting material as environmental enrichment for laboratory mice

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