Environmental Enrichment improves neuromotor dysfunction in Mecp2−/y mice.
A, Footprint analysis showed impaired walking patterns in Mecp2−/y-SC mice compared with Mecp2−/y-EE and Mecp2+/y−SC control animals. B, Measures taken for footprint analysis .C, Speed of movement (cm/s) was faster for Mecp2−/y-EE than Mecp2−/y-SC mice. D, Mecp2−/y-EE mice displayed improved motor coordination compared with Mecp2−/y-SC evidenced by a shorter time to reach the platform for the first time and E, higher number of arrivals to the platform in the elevated beam test. The total number of animals in each group is shown (n). Mean ± SEM values are presented. A two-way repeated measures ANOVA (genotype×condition) demonstrated differences in the mean values among the different levels of condition (F = 8.06; p = 0.007). Student's t test indicated that the Mecp2−/y-SC group was significantly different from the other two groups (*: p<0.05).