Identification of mouse gaits using a novel force-sensing exercise wheel.

Area of Science:

• Biomechanics
• Animal locomotion
• Neuroscience research models

Background:

• Animal gaits offer insights into neurological and musculoskeletal disorders.
• Mouse locomotion is a key research area, but gait variability with speed remains unclear.
• Previous methods for studying mouse gaits were limited by intermittent data collection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel method for continuous measurement of mouse vertical ground reaction forces.
• To quantify and identify mouse gaits across a range of speeds.
• To investigate gait transitions and their relationship to dynamic similarity principles.

Main Methods:

• A 3D-printed, instrumented exercise wheel continuously measured vertical ground reaction forces.
• High-speed video analyzed kinematic parameters.
• A novel metric, '3S' (stride signal symmetry), classified gaits based on force trace symmetry.

Main Results:

• The novel wheel enabled continuous recording of forces and consecutive strides.
• Mice utilize both symmetric and asymmetric gaits, with distinct regions identified by gait frequency.
• Boundary speeds between gait regions correlated with predicted gait transition speeds.

Conclusions:

• The developed exercise wheel provides a continuous, quantitative method for analyzing mouse gaits.
• Mouse locomotion exhibits distinct gait regions and transitions that align with dynamic similarity hypotheses.
• This tool facilitates research into mouse biomechanics, locomotion, and neurological/musculoskeletal conditions.