Table 1.

Mouse behavioral tests related to deficits in the three core domains of autism spectrum disorders. For detailed descriptions and methods of each task see for example Crawley 2007; Moy, Nadler et al. 2007; Amodeo, Jones et al. 2012

ASD Signs	Mouse Task	Behavioral Measures
Abnormal social approach, lack of initiation of social interaction1	Three-chambered social approach	Number of entries Time spent in social vs. object chambers Sniff time of novel object and mouse
Deficits in developmentally appropriate play1	Dyadic social interaction -Juvenile social interaction -Adult reciprocal interactions	Frequency of individual behaviors (e.g. nose-to-nose, push, crawl) Time interacting with novel animal
Deficits in understanding non-verbal communication2	Social transmission of food preference	Food choice sampled Amount of food sampled
Poorly integrated verbal communication; stereotyped or repetitive use of speech2,3	Ultrasonic vocalizations elicited during: -Pub separation -Juvenile play -Resident/Intruder task -Male-female interactions	Total number of calls Call type Average vocalization length
Excessive adherence to routines or excessive resistance to change3	Y-maze, Morris Water Maze	Number of perseverations
Stereotyped or repetitive motor movements3	Self-groomig	Number of grooming bouts Time spend grooming
	Marble burying	Number of marbles buried
Hyper- or hypo-reactivity to sensory input	Acoustic startle	Amplitude of startle response
	Pre-pulse inhibition	Percent inhibition

Core domains of ASD as noted in the DSM-IV-TR (American Psychological Association 2006)

¹Impaired social interactions

²Deficits in communication

³Restricted and repetitive behaviors