Table 2. Results of experimenter handling on exploratory measures in the eight arm radial maze.
| Training | Tail handling | Cupped handling | F1,21 (Handling) | F1,105 (Handling x session) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| positive arm score | 0.18 ± 0.03 | 0.13 ± 0.05 | 0.31 | 0.28 |
| number of arms entered | 43 ± 2 | 49 ± 1 | 4.50 | 0.57 |
| positive arms entered % | 58 ± 2 | 58 ± 1 | 0.02 | 0.67 |
| negative arms entered % | 42 ± 1 | 42 ± 1 | 0.02 | 0.67 |
| Testing | ||||
| reference arm score | - 0.13 ± 0.05 | - 0.25 ± 0.07 | 1.43 | - |
| positive arm score | 0.17 ± 0.10 | 0.36 ± 0.02 | 3.16 | - |
| near positive arm score | 0.13 ± 0.07 | 0.12 ± 0.05 | 0.28 | - |
| reference arms entered | 0.44 ± 0.01 | 0.39 ± 0.03 | 2.67 | - |
| ambiguous arms entered | 0.56 ± 0.01 | 0.61 ± 0.03 | 2.67 | - |
| number of all arms entered | 52 ± 5 | 60 ± 4 | 1.79 | - |
| speed (cm/s) | 10 ± 1 | 11 ± 1 | 0.68 | - |
For both handling methods, mean ± SEM are shown. Time spent in arms is presented as proportion of trial duration. Higher positive arm score indicates mice spent more time in positive arms compared to negative arms, higher reference arm score indicates mice spent more time in reference arms compared to ambiguous arms, and a higher near positive arm score means more time spent in near positive versus near negative arms. Number of all arms entered is presented as counts and arm entries to reference and ambiguous as proportion of all arms entered.