Abstract
Environmental enrichment is an essential component of laboratory animal housing that allows animals to engage in natural behaviors in an otherwise artificial setting. Previous research by the authors suggested that, compared with synthetic enrichment materials, natural materials were associated with lower stress levels in mice. Here, the authors compare the effects of different enrichment materials on stress, memory and exploratory behavior in Swiss Webster mice. Mice that were provided with natural enrichment materials had lower stress levels, better memory and greater exploratory behavior than did mice provided with synthetic enrichment materials or with no enrichment materials. These findings suggest that provision of natural enrichment materials can improve well-being of laboratory mice.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the University of Nevada School of Medicine Laboratory Animal Care Service for protocol assistance. We also thank Dr. John J. Hasenau and Dr. Richard Simmonds for their support. Finally, we thank BioServ and Enzo Life Sciences for donations of materials.
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Enrichment materials for this study were donated by Bio-Serv.
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Acklin, C., Gault, R. Effects of natural enrichment materials on stress, memory and exploratory behavior in mice. Lab Anim 44, 262–267 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban.735
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/laban.735