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bioRxiv · 10.1101/2021.05.26.445893

Female mice exhibit a more sensitive automated squint response to pain induced by CGRP and amylin

Rea, B. J.·Sowers, L. P.·Davison, A. L.·Fairbanks, A. M.·Wattiez, A.-S.·Poolman, P.·Kardon, R. H.·Russo, A. F.
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Abstract

We developed an automated squint assay using both black C57BL/6J and white CD1 mice that measured the interpalpebral fissure area between the upper and lower eyelids as an objective quantification of pain. In C57BL/6J mice, we observed a squint response to increasing doses of a migraine trigger, the neuropeptide CGRP, including a significant response in female mice at a dose below detection by the manual grimace scale. Using the automated software, both C57BL/6J and CD1 mice lacked a detectable photic blink response. The CGRP-related peptide amylin induced squinting behavior in female mice, but not males. These data demonstrate that an automated squint assay can be used as an objective, real-time continuous-scale measure of pain that provides higher precision and real-time analysis compared to manual grimace assessments.

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Rea, B. J., Sowers, L. P., Davison, A. L., Fairbanks, A. M., Wattiez, A.-S., Poolman, P., Kardon, R. H., Russo, A. F.. 2021-05-27. Female mice exhibit a more sensitive automated squint response to pain induced by CGRP and amylin. https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.05.26.445893

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