Blog Posts Tagged: video tracking

How to get reliable results on object recognition using video tracking

In the beginning of this year I wrote a post about the Morris water maze test, a popular and well-validated paradigm to study learning and memory in rats and mice.

EthoVision XT and the open field test

Imagine you are dropped in the center of a wide open field. Would you explore the entire area? Or hunker down around the edges, fearing predators and other unknowns?

How sleep heals the brain

We sleep a large portion of our lives. And now researchers have proven that it can heal the brain.

Serotonin and social skills: how adult mice differ from juveniles

Serotonin is a busy neurotransmitter, influencing processes as memory, mood, emotion, appetite, and sexuality. A prime role for this neurotransmitter is social behavior, across a variety of species; humans, rodents, primates.

Zebrafish provide key insights into alcohol addiction

Why is it that when people drink, only small subsets of individuals develop an alcohol addiction? Steven Tran from the Gerlai Lab tells us why zebrafish are very helpful in the search for the answer to this question.

Does pesticide resistance make malaria mosquitoes “smarter”?

In one of my previous blog posts, I wrote about the success of insecticide treated bed nets in preventing malaria. In the past five years, mortality from malaria has dropped with 60%.

A new fish on the block: Japanese medaka in toxicology studies

We are all very familiar with zebrafish as a model species in neuroscience research. Today, let's talk about another fish, the Japanese medaka.

Dementia symptoms following surgery

This week we have a guest post by Iris Hovens. She has done some really interesting research into the consequences of surgery in terms of reduced memory and concentration problems.

Bigger is not always better: hypothesis testing in sexual evolution

Sexual selection can lead to fascinating phenomena. We are all familiar with the fabulous color display of male peacocks to attract females. Less well known, but definitely not less interesting, are stalk-eyed flies.

A new approach in the battle against malaria

Bed nets treated with insecticide (ITNs) greatly decrease malaria illness and mortality. ITNs can decrease infant mortality from all causes by more than 20%.

Mice in the spotlight: why you should perform your tests in a home cage

Mouse models are essential for neuroscience research. Many tests are susceptible to bias. Home cage testing provides a number of solutions.

How you can efficiently screen for plant resistance to aphids

Aphids are small insects that pierce plant leaves and suck out their contents. Although they inflict limited physical destruction to the plant, aphids commonly infect plants with viruses, which can destroy complete harvests.