Post-stroke protection from maladaptive effects of learning with the non-paretic forelimb by bimanual home cage experience in C57BL/6 mice.
Behavioral experience, in the form of skilled limb use, has been found to impact the structure and function of the central nervous system, affecting post-stroke behavioral outcome in both adaptive and maladaptive ways. Learning to rely on the less-affected, or non-paretic, body side is common following stroke in both humans and rodent models. In rats, it has been observed that skilled learning with the non-paretic forelimb following ischemic insult leads to impaired or delayed functional recovery of the paretic limb. Here we used a mouse model of focal motor cortical ischemic injury to examine the effects of non-paretic limb training following unilateral stroke. In addition, we exposed some mice to increased bimanual experience in the home cage following stroke to investigate the impact of coordinated dexterous limb use on the non-paretic limb training effect. Our results confirmed that skilled learning with the non-paretic limb impaired functional recovery following stroke in C56BL/6 mice, as it does in rats. Further, this effect was avoided when the skill learning of the non-paretic limb was coupled with increased dexterous use of both forelimbs in the home cage. These findings further establish the mouse as an appropriate model in which to study the neural mechanisms of recovery following stroke and extend previous findings to suggest that the dexterous coordinated use of the paretic and non-paretic limb can promote functional outcome following injury.
['Kerr|Abigail L|AL|', 'Wolke|Malerie L|ML|', 'Bell|Jared A|JA|', 'Jones|Theresa A|TA|']
D000704:Analysis of Variance D000818:Animals D004195:Disease Models, Animal D019332:Endothelin-1 D004777:Environment D005508:Food Deprivation D005552:Forelimb D007839:Functional Laterality D007858:Learning D008297:Male D051379:Mice D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL D009048:Motor Skills D010291:Paresis D020127:Recovery of Function D020521:Stroke D000071939:Stroke Rehabilitation D013997:Time Factors
Stroke Experience-dependent plasticity Learned nonuse Motor cortex Motor rehabilitation