Automated system for training and assessing string-pulling behaviors in rodents.

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Abstract

String-pulling tasks have been used for centuries to study coordinated bimanual motor behavior and problem solving. String pulling is rapidly learned, ethologically grounded, and has been applied to many species and disease conditions. Assessment of string-pulling behaviors is labor intensive due to the lack of integrated hardware and software systems for training and analyzing the behavior or for synchronizing measurements with neurophysiological recordings.We present the PANDA system (Pulling And Neural Data Analysis), a system that utilizes a continuous string loop connected to a rotary encoder, feeder, microcontroller, high-speed camera, and analysis software for assessment and training of string-pulling behaviors and synchronization with neural recording data.We demonstrate this system in unimplanted rats and rats implanted with electrodes in motor cortex and hippocampus and show how the PANDA system can be used to assess relationships between paw movements and single-unit and local-field activity.String-pulling is typically shaped by tying food reward to the end of a string and manually scoring behavior. Consequently, string-pulling bouts are short and require frequent manual re-baiting. The system presented here automates training, integrates deep-learning guided video tracking and behavior assessment. Importantly, automation dramatically increases the length of string pulled to >100 meters per 15-minute session.The PANDA system will be of general use to researchers investigating motor control, motivation, and motor disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and stroke. It will also support the investigation of neural mechanisms involved in sensorimotor integration.High-speed tracking of continuous grasping and pulling behaviors.Automated and adaptive reinforcement of string-pulling behavior.Integration with neural recording and video tracking systems.Open-source software and hardware.