VISUAL DYSFUNCTION SCREENING ON rmTBI MOUSE MODELS USING AN OPTOMOTOR ASSESSMENT

Date of Award

2016

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Natural Sciences

First Advisor

Bauer, Gordon

Area of Concentration

Biopsychology

Abstract

There is abundant research that demonstrates that exposure to repetitive mild traumatic brain injury (rmTBI) leads to significant changes in mood, behavior, and cognition. However, what is not widely known is that visual function is also at risk post rmTBI exposure. rmTBI leads to optic nerve and retinal degeneration, preventing the eyes from performing at their optimal level. To assess visual function, the current study used a mechanical optomotor apparatus to measure the optomotor reflex (OMR) in mice exposed to rmTBI. Compared to the control group, the rmTBI group performed the optomotor reflex at a significantly lower frequency and duration in response to the optomotor stimulus, showing that TBI does have a consequence on visual functioning. Since the optomotor apparatus does not require training from the mice to produce the optomotor reflex, it provides an efficient measure of visual function. This study introduces the use of the optomotor apparatus as an optimized method of visual screening for TBI visual pathology.

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