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Updated: Jan 18, 2026
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Low-Cost Gait Analysis for Behavioral Phenotyping of Mouse Models of Neuromuscular Disease
Published on: July 18, 2019
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Systematic gait analysis in alpha-synuclein transgenic line 62 mice using the CatWalk
Karima Schwab1, Lianne Robinson1, Jack Bray1
1School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition, University of Aberdeen, Foresterhill, Aberdeen AB25 2ZD, UK.
Behavioural Brain Research
|September 12, 2025
Summary
Parkinson's disease (PD) mouse models show impaired gait, with deficits worsening with age. These findings highlight α-synuclein's role in motor control and suggest gait analysis as a key tool for PD research.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Animal Models
- Biomedical Engineering
Background:
- Alpha-synuclein aggregation is a hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD), causing motor and gait impairments.
- Rodent gait assessment models are crucial for studying pre-clinical PD.
- Line 62 (L62) transgenic mice expressing human alpha-synuclein serve as a pre-clinical model for PD and synucleinopathies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically assess gait performance in L62 transgenic mice using the CatWalk automated gait analysis system.
- To investigate gait abnormalities in a pre-clinical mouse model of Parkinson's disease.
- To evaluate the impact of age and sex on gait deficits in L62 mice.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the CatWalk automated gait analysis system to measure gait parameters in L62 transgenic mice and wild-type (WT) littermates.
- Compared gait performance between male and female mice of different ages (6 and 12 months).
- Analyzed spatial and temporal interlimb coordination, stride length, base of support, and running speed.
Main Results:
- L62 mice exhibited impaired gait, including reduced running time, smaller base of support, and interlimb coordination deficiencies compared to WT mice.
- Gait deficits were more pronounced in older (12-month-old) L62 mice, particularly males.
- Kinetic and coordination deficits were observed in both sexes by 6 months, with spatial deficits emerging earlier in males and temporal deficits in females.
Conclusions:
- Gait performance is significantly impaired in L62 alpha-synuclein transgenic mice, serving as a valid pre-clinical model for Parkinson's disease.
- Age exacerbates gait impairments, with deficits being most severe in aged male L62 mice.
- Sex-specific differences in the emergence of spatial and temporal gait deficits were observed, suggesting complex disease progression pathways.
