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Updated: Feb 12, 2026
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Assessing Changes in Volatile General Anesthetic Sensitivity of Mice after Local or Systemic Pharmacological Intervention
Published on: October 16, 2013
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The Mouse as a Model Organism for Assessing Anesthetic Sensitivity
Andrzej Z Wasilczuk1, Kaitlyn L Maier1, Max B Kelz2
1University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, United States.
Methods in Enzymology
|March 29, 2018
Summary
Mice are valuable models for understanding human disease genetics. This chapter details anesthetic phenotyping methods in mice to explore general anesthetic effects on behavior.
Area of Science:
- Genetics
- Neuroscience
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Mice are extensively utilized in medical research to elucidate the genetic underpinnings of human physiology and disease.
- Significant advancements in genetic and informatics resources for mice have been made over the last two decades.
- The mouse serves as an ideal model organism for investigating general anesthetic mechanisms due to ongoing progress in neural circuitry mapping.
Purpose of the Study:
- To provide guidelines for anesthetic phenotyping in mice.
- To detail both motor-dependent and motor-independent assessments for evaluating anesthetic effects.
- To leverage the mouse model for unraveling the complexities of general anesthetic action.
Main Methods:
- Description of established anesthetic phenotyping protocols in mice.
- Inclusion of motor-dependent behavioral assessments.
- Inclusion of motor-independent behavioral assessments.
Main Results:
- Guidelines for conducting anesthetic phenotyping are presented.
- Methods for assessing motor and non-motor anesthetic effects are described.
- The utility of the mouse model for anesthetic research is highlighted.
Conclusions:
- The mouse is a suitable model for studying general anesthetic mechanisms.
- Anesthetic phenotyping in mice, encompassing motor and non-motor behaviors, is crucial for research.
- This chapter provides a framework for future anesthetic studies using mouse models.
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