Octodon degus laboratory colony management principles and methods for behavioral analysis for Alzheimer’s disease neuroscience research
The Chilean degu (Octodon degus) is a medium sized, long-lived rodent with traits that make them a natural model for neuroscience research. Their social behaviors, diurnality, and extended developmental time course, when compared to other rodents, make them useful for social behavioral, chronobiolog...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2024.1517416/full |
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| author | B. Maximiliano Garduño Todd C. Holmes Todd C. Holmes Robert M. J. Deacon Xiangmin Xu Xiangmin Xu Xiangmin Xu Patricia Cogram Patricia Cogram |
| author_facet | B. Maximiliano Garduño Todd C. Holmes Todd C. Holmes Robert M. J. Deacon Xiangmin Xu Xiangmin Xu Xiangmin Xu Patricia Cogram Patricia Cogram |
| author_sort | B. Maximiliano Garduño |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The Chilean degu (Octodon degus) is a medium sized, long-lived rodent with traits that make them a natural model for neuroscience research. Their social behaviors, diurnality, and extended developmental time course, when compared to other rodents, make them useful for social behavioral, chronobiology, and developmental research. Lab-kept degus have a long lifespan (5–8 years) and may naturally develop age-related diseases that resemble Alzheimer’s disease. While there is significant interest in using the Octodon degus for neuroscience research, including aging and Alzheimer’s disease studies, laboratory management and methods for degus research are currently not standardized. This lack of standardization potentially impacts study reproducibility and makes it difficult to compare results between different laboratories. Degus require species-specific housing and handling methods that reflect their ecology, life history, and group-living characteristics. Here we introduce major principles and ethological considerations of colony management and husbandry. We provide clear instructions on laboratory practices necessary for maintaining a healthy and robust colony of degus for Alzheimer’s disease neuroscience research towards conducting reproducible studies. We also report detailed procedures and methodical information for degu Apoe genotyping and ethologically relevant burrowing behavioral tasks in laboratory settings. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-f6ed5a48d0c24756bb9af06a5b961b85 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1663-4365 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj-art-f6ed5a48d0c24756bb9af06a5b961b852025-01-20T07:20:32ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience1663-43652025-01-011610.3389/fnagi.2024.15174161517416Octodon degus laboratory colony management principles and methods for behavioral analysis for Alzheimer’s disease neuroscience researchB. Maximiliano Garduño0Todd C. Holmes1Todd C. Holmes2Robert M. J. Deacon3Xiangmin Xu4Xiangmin Xu5Xiangmin Xu6Patricia Cogram7Patricia Cogram8Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United StatesDepartment of Physiology and Biophysics, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United StatesThe Center for Neural Circuit Mapping, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United StatesDepartment of Ecological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Institute of Ecology and Biodiversity, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, ChileDepartment of Anatomy and Neurobiology, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United StatesThe Center for Neural Circuit Mapping, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United StatesInstitute for Memory Impairments and Neurological Disorders, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United StatesThe Center for Neural Circuit Mapping, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United StatesDepartment of Ecological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Institute of Ecology and Biodiversity, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, ChileThe Chilean degu (Octodon degus) is a medium sized, long-lived rodent with traits that make them a natural model for neuroscience research. Their social behaviors, diurnality, and extended developmental time course, when compared to other rodents, make them useful for social behavioral, chronobiology, and developmental research. Lab-kept degus have a long lifespan (5–8 years) and may naturally develop age-related diseases that resemble Alzheimer’s disease. While there is significant interest in using the Octodon degus for neuroscience research, including aging and Alzheimer’s disease studies, laboratory management and methods for degus research are currently not standardized. This lack of standardization potentially impacts study reproducibility and makes it difficult to compare results between different laboratories. Degus require species-specific housing and handling methods that reflect their ecology, life history, and group-living characteristics. Here we introduce major principles and ethological considerations of colony management and husbandry. We provide clear instructions on laboratory practices necessary for maintaining a healthy and robust colony of degus for Alzheimer’s disease neuroscience research towards conducting reproducible studies. We also report detailed procedures and methodical information for degu Apoe genotyping and ethologically relevant burrowing behavioral tasks in laboratory settings.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2024.1517416/fullOctodon degushusbandrystandard operating proceduresAlzheimer’s diseaseanimal models |
| spellingShingle | B. Maximiliano Garduño Todd C. Holmes Todd C. Holmes Robert M. J. Deacon Xiangmin Xu Xiangmin Xu Xiangmin Xu Patricia Cogram Patricia Cogram Octodon degus laboratory colony management principles and methods for behavioral analysis for Alzheimer’s disease neuroscience research Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience Octodon degus husbandry standard operating procedures Alzheimer’s disease animal models |
| title | Octodon degus laboratory colony management principles and methods for behavioral analysis for Alzheimer’s disease neuroscience research |
| title_full | Octodon degus laboratory colony management principles and methods for behavioral analysis for Alzheimer’s disease neuroscience research |
| title_fullStr | Octodon degus laboratory colony management principles and methods for behavioral analysis for Alzheimer’s disease neuroscience research |
| title_full_unstemmed | Octodon degus laboratory colony management principles and methods for behavioral analysis for Alzheimer’s disease neuroscience research |
| title_short | Octodon degus laboratory colony management principles and methods for behavioral analysis for Alzheimer’s disease neuroscience research |
| title_sort | octodon degus laboratory colony management principles and methods for behavioral analysis for alzheimer s disease neuroscience research |
| topic | Octodon degus husbandry standard operating procedures Alzheimer’s disease animal models |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2024.1517416/full |
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