V.O. Molodtsov1, D.G. Semenov2, V.Yu. Smirnov3, S.D. Solnushkin4, V.N. Chikhman5

1, 3 St. Petersburg State Electrotechnical University "LETI" named after V.I. Ulyanov (Lenin) (St. Petersburg, Russia)
2, 4, 5 Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Russian Academy of Sciences (St.-Petersburg, Russia)
1 molodcov@mail.eltech.ru, 2 dsem50@rambler.ru, 3 vysmirnov@etu.ru, 4 solnushkin@list.ru, 5 chikhmanvn@infran.ru

Problem statement. The innate reflex of startling in response to a short unexpected sound stimulus (acoustic startle reflex – ASR) is characteristic of both experimental animals and humans. Among the ASR parameters, the amplitude of muscle contraction in response to a strong stimulus and the degree of its suppression by a previous weak stimulus (prepulse) serve as markers of sensorimotor gating and are widely used in medical and experimental practice to identify mental disorders. At the same time, the high sensitivity of the recording equipment to the mechanical response, the accuracy of determining the ASR amplitude at various stimulus parameters, and a convenient service for real-time output and primary processing of results are critical characteristics of the method.

Objective. To develop hardware and software for accurate quantitative automated measurements of ASR parameters in a behavioral experiment on rats.

Results. The hardware module based on an accelerometric sensor and software for accurate quantitative measurement of parameters in the study of sensory-motor functions of rats at the Pavlov Institute of Physiology of the Russian Academy of Sciences have been developed.

Practical significance. Hardware and software modules have been implemented to measure and register the parameters of the startling reflex with high sensitivity, and display them in real time on the screen during the experiment, which improves the quality of studying animal translational models at the preclinical research stage.

Molodtsov V.O., Semenov D.G., Smirnov V.Yu., Solnushkin S.D., Chikhman V.N. Accelerometric startle reflex detector. Biomedicine Radioengineering. 2025. V. 28. № 6. P. 16–23. DOI: https:// doi.org/10.18127/j15604136-202506-02 (In Russian)

1. Gómez-Nieto R. Hormigo S., López D.E. Prepulse Inhibition of the Auditory Startle Reflex Assessment as a Hallmark of Brainstem Sensorimotor Gating Mechanisms. Brain Sci. 2020. 10: 639.
2. Molodczov V.O., Smirnov V.Yu., Solnushkin S.D., Chixman V.N. Registraciya refleksa ispuga. Pribory` i texn. e`ksper. 2023. 3: 154–156.
3. Semenov D.G., Belyakov A.V., Chikhman V.N., Solnushkin S.D. Acoustic Startle Reflex of Wistar Rats. Methodical Elaboration and Validation in Experiment. J. Evol. Biochem. Physiol. 2024. 60(6): 2528–2534.
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