[Generation of Gait Rhythm in Mice]

The arrangement of a series of repetitive motions on the time axis should be planned while constructing continuous movement. To understand the mechanism for planning continuous movement and its neural basis, mice were trained to perform complicated continuous step running. The repeated foot movements and neural activities of the animals were recorded. The scaffolding peg arrangement was complex; however, the steps turned out to be more rhythmic, indicating that the mice adjusted to repeat their movements periodically rather than fitting their foot timing with the peg arrangement. In addition, neural activity recorded from the striatum was also found to be rhythmic, suggesting that the striatum may be involved in converting complex inputs into more rhythmic outputs.