Volumetric Brain Changes Following Standardized Dynamic Enrichment of Mice

Jan Scholz¹, Rylan Allemang-Grand¹, Jason P. Lerch¹

Environmental enrichment is used to study brain plasticity in rodents. Here we propose a standardized way of enrichment that allows well-controlled dynamic changes to the environment. Longitudinal manganese-enhance MRI allows to observe whole brain volumetric changes. Here we show that dynamic enrichment is associated with structural changes in specific memory and navigation-related areas of the mouse brain, such as the retrosplenial cortex and the dentate gyrus. Subsequent spatial training shows behavioural benefits of enrichment. Our study suggests that dynamic spatial enrichment might be associated with plasticity in key brain areas.