Contributing to Scientific Reproducibility Through Video Production of Neuroscience Methods

Science Center, Bent Corridor

JoVE, the Journal of Visualized Experiments, is the first peer reviewed scientific video journal. A main purpose of JoVE is to increase experimental reproducibility through “How-to” video tutorials and protocols. A typical JoVE video includes a step-by-step demonstration of how a specific scientific approach is conducted. Particularly difficult components of techniques are highlighted and representative data are presented for the purpose of providing viewers with a tutorial that instructs not just on a particular scientific method, but also provides suggestions for data collection and analyses. This JoVE video will demonstrate how to temporarily “turn off” neuronal activity in an individual brain region (the retrosplenial cortex) while animals are engaged in a complex learning and memory task (the sensory preconditioning paradigm). Importantly, by combining pharmacogenetics (Designer-Receptors- Exclusively-Activated-by-Designer-Drugs; DREADDs) with a behavioral paradigm that separates different forms of learning into discrete phases of testing, the approaches can shed light on how specific brain regions contribute to specific components of learning. While this particular video focuses on learning and memory research, the combination of pharmacogenetic and behavioral techniques demonstrated in this video can be applied across a wide range of neuroscience research topics.