Assessment of Respiratory Function in Conscious Mice by Double-chamber Plethysmography.

Air volume changes created by a conscious subject breathing spontaneously within a body box are at the basis of plethysmography, a technique used to non-invasively assess some features of the respiratory function in humans as well as in laboratory animals. The present article focuses on the application of the double-chamber plethysmography (DCP) in small animals. It provides background information on the methodology as well as a detailed step-by-step procedure to successfully assess respiratory function in conscious, spontaneously breathing animals in a non-invasive manner.

Repeated airway constrictions in mice do not alter respiratory function.

It is suggested that the frequent strain the airways undergo in asthma because of repeated airway smooth muscle (ASM)-mediated constrictions contributes to airway wall remodeling. However, the effects of repeated constrictions on airway remodeling, as well as the ensuing impact of this presumptive remodeling on respiratory mechanics, have never been investigated in subjects without asthma. In this study, we set out to determine whether repeated constrictions lead to features that are reminiscent of asthma in mice without asthma.