In humans a similar task has proved to be highly effective for the early detection of Alzheimer's disease (AD). A 1995 study using volunteers who thought they had memory issues [named the questionable dementia (QD) group] found that CANTAB PAL could discriminate who had AD at an early stage.
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The graph shows individual subject results The 34 error cut-off (shown by red line) would have discriminated at the 6-month point who in the QD group would go on to receive AD diagnoses and who would not.
The translational potential of the paradigm can be seen by comparing human and mice DLG2 mutation studies. CANTAB PAL with people with DLG2 mutations produced a similar phenotypic profile to that observed by using the rodent PAL task with Dlg2-knockout mice.
In the PAL task for rodents, subjects learn and remember which of three objects goes in which of three spatial locations. On a given trial, two different objects are presented; one in its correct location; the other in an incorrect location. The subject must choose which stimulus is in the correct location. The task has been shown to be sensitive to cholinergic transmission and to hippocampal dysfunction and can dissociate glutamate from acetylcholine receptor function in the hippocampus.
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Second Generation Bussey Chamber developed for mice with Intelli-interface supports up to 20 chambers on one PC. On the strength of 10 years of feedback and development, the system is even more flexible and with more features.
Adapted for rats, this is a hippocampal task. In humans, this task has proved to be highly effective for the early detection of Alzheimer's disease.
