Jul 01, 2025
Open Field Behavior in Mice
Forked from Open Field Behavior in Mice
- Yue Sun1,
- Richard Roth1,
- Fuu-Jiun Hwang1,
- Jun B. Ding1,
- Shenyu Zhai2
- 1Stanford University;
- 2Northwestern University
Protocol Citation: Yue Sun, Richard Roth, Fuu-Jiun Hwang, Jun B. Ding, Shenyu Zhai 2025. Open Field Behavior in Mice. protocols.io https://dx.doi.org/10.17504/protocols.io.5jyl88rb9l2w/v1
License: This is an open access protocol distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited
Protocol status: Working
We use this protocol and it's working
Created: July 01, 2025
Last Modified: July 01, 2025
Protocol Integer ID: 221428
Keywords: ASAPCRN, open field, mouse, open field, open field behavior in mice, open field test, like responses in rodent, spontaneous locomotor activity, open field behavior, mice, rodent, anxiety, exploratory behavior, field, field test, test
Funders Acknowledgements:
Aligning Science Across Parkinson’s (ASAP)
Grant ID: ASAP-020551
Abstract
The open field test is widely used to assess spontaneous locomotor activity, exploratory behavior, and anxiety-like responses in rodents. In this fork, the test duration has been modified and the software used described.
Attachments
Materials
Open field arena: 50 x 50 x 50 cm chambers
Video recording: A camera mounted above the chambers, adjusted to ensure full coverage of the arena.
70% ethanol spray and paper towel
Troubleshooting
Safety warnings
Wear appropriate PPE as required by your institution.
Ethics statement
Prior ethics approval (e.g. IACUC) should be obtained before performing these experiments. Approval was obtained by the Stanford University IACUC before any procedures were performed.
Before start
Customize the settings on the ANY-maze software, including the type of animals used, parameters to be tracked, and calibration of the camera feed.
Procedure
Habituate the mice for 45-60 min in the room where the testing will be performed.
Open the ANY-maze software and start a new experiment.
Place the mouse gently in the center of the open field arena.
Start recording.
The duration of each test session is 5 minutes, but may be changed depending on the experimental design.
After allotted time, stop the recording and return the mouse to its home cage.
Optional observation: Record the number of fecal boli and urine spots as additional indicators of anxiety.
Thoroughly clean the chambers with 70% ethanol between trials and after testing to eliminate odor cues from previous animals.