Author(s): Lillian E. Puckett, Alexis D. Whaley, Katharine A. Tesar, Jason M. Walters, Chaoran Li, Joshua Vernon, Bridger J. Hubble
Mentor(s): Lynn H. White
Institution SUU
Previous research on humans in our lab found that digitally recorded music affects EEG asymmetry in ways different from analog recordings. Specifically, digital recordings impacted asymmetry to a greater extent than did analog. We also showed that compared to analog recordings, digital recordings affected skin conductance, heart rate, and heart rate variability in a way indicative of greater stress and reduced overall well-being (manuscript in preparation). These investigations are the first, worldwide, to test the effect of digital versus analog sound on any dependent variable in any species. The present study will determine whether the effect of sound recording (digital vs analog) affects other species, specifically, C57BL/6 mice. Forty, five-week-old mice were randomly assigned to one of two home rooms in different buildings. In one room, 20 mice heard digital (mp3) music, while the remaining mice heard the analog version (on cassette tape) in the other room. The music played for four hours a day Monday through Friday. During week seven and while the music schedule continued in their home room, the mice were tested on the three-chamber social preference test in a different room. Each mouse was given five minutes to habituate to and explore the empty apparatus, with an identical wire mesh cage placed in each outer chamber. The mouse was then given 10 minutes to explore the apparatus with an unfamiliar mouse (the stranger) in one of the cages. The total time spent in the chamber with the stranger was recorded, as well as the number of incidences when the mouse aggressively thumped its tail. During week nine and while music continued in the home rooms, each mouse was taken to a different room and placed in an acrylic restraint tube for 60 minutes. Blood glucose was measured immediately upon insertion, at 30 minutes, and at the end of the 60-minute session. Data analysis is underway. We hypothesize that compared to the analog mice, digital mice will 1. spend less time with the stranger mouse, 2. show a blunted blood glucose response to stress, and 3. show a greater number of aggressive tail wag incidences. Beyond extending the effect of sound recording type to a non-human species and beginning to elucidate the behaviors impacted, these results would help rule out the possibility that the sound effect is specific to a given set of lyrics. Clearly, lyrics are irrelevant to animals incapable of perceiving their meaning.