Animal behaviour PSI-CO

In brief

The NeuroPSI animal behaviour platform, PSI-CO, provides NeuroPSI as well as external teams, a set of behavioural tests adapted to aquatic and rodent models.

OVERVIEW

For more information or to request a quote, please contact Cynthia FROC.

Our complete and innovative battery of tests will allow you to explore spontaneous behaviours (locomotion, exploration), anxiety-like behaviours, social behaviours, and various cognitive functions (learning, memory, risk-taking …) in your study models.

Our platform has several areas dedicated to the study of behavioural phenotypes, which are equipped with various behavioural setups, coupled with cameras and ANY-maze or Viewpoint video monitoring software.

To meet the needs of neuroscience experimenters, surgery rooms, injection rooms and perfusion rooms are also available. The aquatic section also offers housing options adaptable to many species such as Danio rerio, Oryzias latipes and cichlids.

Aquatic models

Teleost fishes have a behavioural repertoire which is relatively similar to that of mammals and birds, and which is better and better described in the literature. The use of fish in neuroscience has the advantage of a large availability of genetic tools that make them the models of choice today (e.g. zebrafish). These neurogenetic approaches, combined with our expertise, will allow you to understand better the mechanisms underlying the behaviours of interest in your experimental models.

Rodent models

Rodents are the most widely used model organisms in neuroscience. They offer many advantages, in large part because they are physiologically similar to humans. The availability of multiple complementary behavioural approaches for analysing the same cognitive/behavioural parameter allows for a robust interpretation of the experimental results.

MEMBERS

Manager

Cynthia FROC – Engineer, CNRS

Scientific referents

Alessandro ALUNNI – Researcher, CNRS
Glenn DALLÉRAC – Researcher, CNRS
Roseline POIRIER – Associate Professor, UPSaclay

SERVICES

LThe services offered by the PSI-CO platform will be adapted to your needs and your model.

For aquatic and rodent models, three categories of tests are available:

Studies of spontaneous behaviours (motor skills, locomotion, exploration, anxiety, etc.)
Tests based on social behaviours (social interactions, aggressiveness, etc.)
Cognitive tests (conditioning, different types of memory, decision making, etc.)