Conditioned Place Preference Cages for Rats or Mice - 2- or 3-compartment (CPP)

Background

• The delivery of appetitive and addictive substances (e.g. drugs) or aversive and unpleasant ones in separated cages the animal should retain a memory of, and hence a preference is a classic and relatively simple experiment.
• Scientists use the rewarding, aversive or even neutral floor and walls differences to create an expectation in the animals that it is in that compartment that they will get more, move more, groom or rear more, etc.
• Obviously the different walls tend to have a weaker impact than floor texture on the association drug-reward-environment, as rodents have a poor visual sense and it’s normal that changing the floors (e.g. squared of different square size, circular holes, plastic, etc.) will be more effective in inducing a preference for one of the two sides with many potential and highly translational discoveries possible, eg:
  • Evaluate the addictive power of a drug (real or recreational)
  • Evaluate the positive effects of antagonist drugs, which may be real antidotes and save lives (e.g. Naloxone in Heroin overdoses)
  • Much more, including memory and conditioning

2-Compartment CPP

This classic configuration consists of two distinct chambers, separated by a door. Each chamber features unique tactile and visual cues.
During conditioning, animals are confined to one chamber after receiving the treatment. During the test session, access to both chambers is allowed and the time spent in each environment is measured to determine preference or aversion.

3-Compartment CPP (with Neutral Area)

The three-chamber apparatus adds a central neutral compartment, made of smooth, non-patterned plastic. Two doors connect the neutral area to the lateral conditioning chambers.
The neutral area and the time spent in it represent an additional parameter to be evaluated, which adds complexity to data interpretation.

2-Compartment CPP Vs. 3-Compartment CPP

The dilemma about the 2 or 3 compartment CPP test is a matter of deciding if:

• Option 1: 2 chambers - Ease of protocol and objectivity in data interpretation with randomization of initial/treatment chamber.

• Option 2: 3 chambers - The animal is put in the central zone as a neutral area, which can be useful as it gives a neutral starting point, however it also makes the analysis of the time spent in this 3

 Customizable, optimized for tracking

• The box includes the contextual cues required by the experimental paradigm for the customizable compartments:
  • 4 interchangeable floors with square or circular patterns
  • 2 sets of walls, for the 2 experimental chambers
• Designed and optimized for use with any video-tracking software (such as ANY-maze) or visual scoring.
• Quick and easy to change both the floors and the wall contexts for a visual and tactile difference between the 2 compartments.
• On request we can provide customized sets of walls, with different patterns or textures.
• Works with cabled animals for optogenetics, electrophysiology, miniscopes, etc.