The Mouse Social Frailty Index (mSFI): A Standardized Protocol

Area of Science:

• Gerontology and aging research
• Animal behavior and social science
• Biomedical research methodologies

Background:

• Aging is characterized by physical and social declines.
• Quantifying biological age and aging processes is crucial in geroscience.
• Existing methods may not fully capture the social dimensions of aging.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a mouse Social Frailty Index (mSFI) to quantify age-related social functioning impairments.
• To assess the utility of the mSFI in discriminating biological aging trajectories.
• To provide a tool for geroscience research focusing on the social aspects of aging.

Main Methods:

• Developed the mSFI using seven minimally disruptive behavioral assays for social communication, interaction, and functional ability.
• Conducted assays over 3.5 days with observational data recording and automated computation.
• Validated the mSFI across multiple sites and experiments, assessing its ability to differentiate aging trajectories.

Main Results:

• The mSFI effectively quantifies age-related impairments in social behavioral functioning in mice.
• The index demonstrated validity and applicability across diverse laboratory settings.
• mSFI successfully discriminated between aging trajectories influenced by sex, progeria, and social stress.

Conclusions:

• The mSFI is a novel and comprehensive tool for evaluating social frailty in aging mice.
• Its ease of use, compatibility with longitudinal studies, and ability to capture social dimensions enhance geroscience research.
• The mSFI can help elucidate the social aspects of the aging process and inform interventions.