Motor Impairment Quantification
Motor Impairment Quantification - Related Videos
02:39
Evaluating Motor Impairment in C. elegans Models Using the Radial Locomotion Assay
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2025
This video demonstrates the use of a radial locomotion assay to evaluate motor dysfunction in C. elegans expressing either wild-type or ALS-mutant human TDP-43 protein. Worms with varying levels of wild-type or mutant TDP-43 expression are allowed to crawl, and their movement is measured by the radial distance traveled from the central point on the assay plate. The assay distinguishes between mild, moderate, and severe motor impairments based on the distance traveled by the different C. elegans...
08:27
Evaluation of Motor Impairment in C. elegans Models of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
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Cited by 9 •
2021
This protocol describes two sensitive assays for discriminating among mild, moderate, and severe motor impairment in C. elegans models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, with general utility for C. elegans strains, with altered motility.
07:46
Gait Analysis of Age-dependent Motor Impairments in Mice with Neurodegeneration
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Cited by 18 •
2018
In this study, we demonstrate the use of kinematic gait analysis based on ventral plane imaging to monitor the subtle changes in motor coordination as well as the progression of neurodegeneration with advancing age in mouse models (e.g., endophilin mutant mouse lines).
08:34
Thinking Too Much Impairs Decision-Making
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2023
Source: Peter Mende-Siedlecki & Jay Van Bavel—New York University When we are considering a tough choice between two or more attractive options, we often end up actively weighing the pros and cons of each alternative. By reflecting on their advantages and disadvantages, we attempt to fit a complex, subjective decision into an orderly set of criteria. However, research in psychology suggests that this sort of introspective approach might not always yield the most optimal outcomes.1 In other...
11:03
Motor Maps
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2023
Source: Laboratories of Jonas T. Kaplan and Sarah I. Gimbel—University of Southern California One principle of brain organization is the topographic mapping of information. Especially in sensory and motor cortices, adjacent regions of the brain tend to represent information from adjacent parts of the body, resulting in maps of the body expressed on the surface of the brain. The primary sensory and motor maps in the brain surround a prominent sulcus known as the central sulcus. The cortex...
FAQs
The most informative variable depends on the movement feature under investigation. Accuracy can reveal task precision, speed and response time can capture performance timing, while coordination, strength, and range of motion describe different aspects of motor capacity. Selecting variables that match the biological question helps distinguish altered movement patterns rather than reducing performance to a single score.
Standardized tasks make measurements more comparable by holding the movement challenge consistent across individuals, conditions, or time points. This consistency helps researchers determine whether a difference reflects altered motor function rather than a change in task demands. Repeated use of the same task can also show whether performance changes during recovery or after treatment.
Quantitative motor data provide measurable links between visible movement and biological processes that support motor control. Changes in accuracy, coordination, strength, or response time can characterize altered nervous system function without relying only on descriptive observation. In biology, this connection helps researchers study how injury or disease affects behavior and how function changes over time.
An assessment begins with a standardized movement task selected for the motor function being studied. Performance is then recorded through relevant measures, such as speed, accuracy, coordination, strength, range of motion, or response time. The resulting values can be organized for comparison across participants, experimental conditions, or time points, producing objective evidence of motor change.
This approach is useful when researchers need to characterize motor effects of nervous system injury or disease, monitor recovery, or assess treatment response. It supports studies involving both human participants and animal models. Because performance is represented by measurable variables, investigators can track changes systematically and compare motor outcomes across experimental groups or stages of recovery.
Changes across time points can indicate whether motor performance is worsening, remaining altered, or improving. The pattern may help characterize disease or injury effects and evaluate recovery or treatment response. Interpretation should consider the specific variables measured, because a change in speed, accuracy, coordination, strength, range of motion, or response time may reflect a different aspect of motor function.