Quantitative assessment of neurologic deficits in a chronic progressive murine model of CNS demyelination

The precise factors involved in the development of a progressive motor dysf unction, a hallmark of immune-mediated demyelinating diseases such as multi ple sclerosis, are not well defined. The ability to identify neurologic def icits that result in impaired motor performance early in disease may allow for the identification of therapeutic interventions that slow or eliminate the progression toward a permanent dysfunction. Here we describe the use of three objective, quantitative functional assays (spontaneous activity box, rotarod, and footprint analysis) to detect early neurologic deficits follo wing the initiation of a demyelinating disease with Theiler's murine enceph alomyelitis virus (TMEV). The results show that the assays are capable of r evealing neurologic deficits at the early stages of the demyelinating disea se process. These findings are the first to objectively characterize neurol ogic function in an animal model of progressive CNS demyelination. (C) 1999 Academic Press.