Apr 08, 2026
Pole test protocol
- 1KU Leuven
Protocol Citation: Ana Cascalho, Nina Schoonvliet, Hanne Dhondt 2026. Pole test protocol. protocols.io https://dx.doi.org/10.17504/protocols.io.kxygx3rqzg8j/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: January 13, 2024
Last Modified: April 09, 2026
Protocol Integer ID: 96556
Keywords: pole test protocol, pole test, pole test protocol this protocol detail, movement disorders in mice, basal ganglia, pole, pole in order, related movement disorder, mouse, mice, test, used test
Abstract
This protocol details the pole test which is a widely used test to assess basal ganglia-related movement disorders in mice (Ogawa et al., 1985, 1987; Matsuura et al., 1997; Sedelis et al., 2001; Fernagut et al., 2003). The procedure evaluates the ability of a mouse to grasp and manoeuvre on a pole in order to descend to its home cage.
Attachments
Guidelines
Notes on preparation:
- Place the pole equipment inside a cage box with no bedding, to facilitate the mice descent and re-collection.
- Make sure the markings of the 30cm stretch are visible in the video.
- Make sure all the experimental trials are recorded - write down the camera used for the recording.
- The presence of a human observer may influence animal behavior. The use of a video camera may help reduce human interference during the test.
- All videos were recorded in .avi format and viewed using VLC media player.
- Make sure the cards indicating the cage and animal tag are clearly visible on the video. For security, also mention out loud which cage and which mouse is getting recorded.
Notes on assay:
- 4 week old mice do not show enough paw grip to walk down and will slide to the bottom, thus mice 5 weeks or older should be used for this assay.
- To avoid sliding, the surface of the pole should be rough. That can be achieved with adhesive tape/sand paper, if needed. This should be a very mild sanding, as a very rough surface will interfere with the results obtained. (max 1-2x a year).
- Some animals may climb over the tip of the pole instead of making a turn. In that case, a small piece (i.e., 7 7 cm) of cardboard can be placed at the top of the pole to prevent climbing (see picture bellow).
- Max time of assay 120s (this can be adjusted if we observe disease-model with significant longer Ttotal)
- Pole Marks: Mark I (8cm), Mark II (14cm from top), Mark III (8cm from the bottom).
- Mice can be trained to complete the pole test over two training trials, the day prior to experimental measurement - too many trials can result in the animal not descending sometimes, so we do not routinely do it because our mice are tested over time.
Materials
- Tripods
- Cameras with chargers
- Timer
- Pens
- Extra cards for animal/cage ID
- LabBook
- Pole
- Clean cage
Pole test
30m
On all test days, habituate the mice for 00:30:00 prior to testing by placing their cage in the testing room.
30m
Place the mouse with its head oriented upward on top of the pole (50cm tall/0.8cm diameter), of which the base is inside cage.
Note
The animals will often naturally orient themselves downward and descend the length of the pole in order to return to their home cage.
The time required for the animals to orient themselves facing in a downward direction (time to T turn) and to descend to the base of the pole (total time) is recorded for three trials. A trial can be repeated a maximum of 5 times.
If the animal does not turn and begins to descent, gently tap it to motivate movement.
Repeat the trial if the following conditions are met:
- When the animal pauses (>5s) while descending, the trial is repeated.
- If the animal does not perform the test as expected: turns down and then turns back up; does not turn and walks up (a distance greater than the distance between 2 marks, walks backwards).
When the animal could not turn but instead descended with a lateral body position, then Ttotal was attributed to Tturn (e.g. Ttotal=13s and Tturn=13s).
When the animal falls off the pole immediately, the maximum scores for Tturn (120 sec) and Ttotal (120 sec) are assigned.
The pole is cleaned by disinfection, with umonium, between different mice.
Note
We analyse Time to descend (completely from placing to cage) and Time to transverse = middle section marked on the pole, 30cm (14 cm from the top and 8cm from the bottom ends).