Behavioral Core Laboratory

The Behavioral Core Laboratory (BCL) at Louisiana State University Health Shreveport (LSUHS) plans, executes, analyzes, and reports animal behavioral studies. Available behavioral models include motor activity, coordinated movement, motivated behavior, learning and memory, spatial navigation, anxiety, and reward/reinforcement. We are developing procedures to study seizure susceptibility, oral consumption of drugs, social behavior, and other assays, and we hope to make these available soon. We are also planning the procedures for behavioral studies in large animal models. If any potential user would like to use a specific assay, contact the BCL director and we will make our best effort to develop this procedure.

The BCL is subsidized by the Louisiana Addiction Research Center (LARC), the Center for Brain Health, the Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology & Neuroscience, and the Office of Research at LSUHS.

Consolidating all behavioral experiments within a centralized core permits the cost effective administration of behavioral tests by well-trained personnel dedicated exclusively to behavioral studies. This dedicated core also ensures rigor in the experimental design and execute of behavioral studies and facilitates standardization and comparisons between laboratories at LSUHS and outside collaborators. This ready-to-use resource also provides budgetary advantages, as behavioral research can be conducted at a fraction of the time and cost associated with establishing these procedures in independent laboratories.