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Mapping Quantitative Trait Loci for Open-Field Behavior in Mice

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Abstract

By performing a whole genome screen in an F2 intercross of two strains of mice (A/J and C57BL/6J), which differ markedly in their behavioral response to a brightly lit open field (O-F), we have mapped several quantitative trait loci (QTL) for this complex behavioral phenotype. QTL on chromosomes 1 and 10 were identified that affect both initial ambulation in the O-F (initial “response to novelty” ambulation) (lod of 7.1 and 8.8, respectively) and vertical rearings (lod of 4.5 and 8.5, respectively). For habituated O-F behavior, QTL were identified on chromosomes 3 and 10 for ambulation (lod of 4.1 and 14.7, respectively) and on chromosomes 1, 10, and 19 for vertical rearings (lod of 5.8, 6.0, and 4.7, respectively). The QTL on chromosome 1 (near D1Mit1 16; 101 cM) was specific for initial O-F ambulation behavior, whereas the QTL on chromosome 10 (near D10Mit237; 74 cM) affected both initial and habituated rearing behavior. Additional suggestive QTL (lod, >2.8) were mapped to chromosomes 1, 8, 11, 15, and 19. The QTL on chromosomes 1, 10, and 19 individually explain from 3.2 to 12.7%. Collectively, the multiple independent QTL explain from 16.3 to 24.1% of the F2 population's phe-notypic variance, depending on the trait. These identified QTL should prove useful for dissecting the genetic and behavioral dimensions of O-F behavior, fostering an understanding of individual differences.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas, 75235-8898

    Howard K. Gershenfeld & Xiaohua Li

  2. Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Dalhousie, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

    Paul E. Neumann

  3. Laboratorie de Psychophysiologie, URA-CNRS 1295, Universite Louis Pasteur, 67000, Strasbourg, France

    Chantal Mathis

  4. NIMH, NIH, Experimental Therapeutics Branch, Bethesda, Maryland, 20892

    Jacqueline N. Crawley

  5. Lilly Research Laboratory, Indianapolis, Indiana, 46285

    Steven M. Paul

  6. Departments of Psychiatry, Pharmacology and Toxicology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, 46202

    Steven M. Paul

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  1. Howard K. Gershenfeld
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  2. Paul E. Neumann
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  4. Jacqueline N. Crawley
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  5. Xiaohua Li
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Gershenfeld, H.K., Neumann, P.E., Mathis, C. et al. Mapping Quantitative Trait Loci for Open-Field Behavior in Mice. Behav Genet 27, 201–210 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1025653812535

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