In behavioral neuroscience, the Light/Dark Box Test is one of the most widely used assays for assessing anxiety-like behaviors in rodents. Traditionally, researchers quantify time spent in the light side to gauge anxiety levels—based on the natural aversion rodents exhibit toward brightly lit, open spaces. However, distance traveled in the dark compartment is often overlooked, despite its unique ability to uncover behavioral dynamics associated with anxiety, locomotor activity, and exploratory motivation.
At Conduct Science, we believe that behavioral data should go beyond surface-level metrics. Our customizable Light/Dark Box, paired with precision tracking via ConductVision or compatible software like ANY-maze, allows researchers to monitor distance traveled, speed, zone transitions, and movement patterns in the dark compartment with accuracy and consistency. This gives researchers a deeper, more nuanced picture of rodent behavior under varying experimental conditions.
The dark compartment of the Light/Dark Box serves as the preferred area for rodents, simulating a sheltered and safe environment. But contrary to the assumption that animals are simply passive in this space, distance traveled in the dark zone can reveal important behavioral states:
1. High distance in dark side:
2. Low distance in dark side:
3. Balanced distance across both zones:
Understanding these behavioral profiles is crucial, especially in drug screening and genetic studies, where it’s essential to distinguish between true anxiolytic effects and non-specific locomotor changes.
Our Light/Dark Box is built to meet modern research demands:
These features enable high-throughput behavioral phenotyping, reproducibility, and seamless integration into diverse experimental workflows.
A research team used Conduct Science’s Light/Dark Box system to evaluate behavior in mice subjected to chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS). The following results were extracted from the dark zone of the apparatus:
| Group | Time in Dark (s) | Distance Traveled (cm) | Avg. Speed (cm/s) |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Control (no stress) |
310.2 ± 9.5 |
105.6 ± 11.2 |
0.34 ± 0.05 |
|
CUMS-exposed |
280.1 ± 11.3 |
64.3 ± 9.8 |
0.23 ± 0.04 |
|
CUMS + Anxiolytic Drug |
290.6 ± 8.9 |
98.7 ± 10.5 |
0.34 ± 0.06 |
While time in the dark remained elevated in all groups, distance traveled in the CUMS group dropped sharply, suggesting increased passive coping (freezing). Treatment with an anxiolytic restored both distance and speed without significantly reducing time in the dark—offering a more sensitive readout of behavioral recovery.
Distance traveled in the dark compartment is especially relevant when:
Combined with light-side data, it creates a composite behavioral profile, enriching your experimental interpretation.
To leverage this metric effectively:
Distance traveled in the dark compartment is more than a locomotor readout—it’s a window into an animal’s coping strategy, movement suppression, and internal conflict resolution. As behavioral scientists, our objective is to capture not just where animals go, but how they move through space and what that reveals about their psychological state.
The Conduct Science Light/Dark Box provides the tools to do just that—transforming traditional anxiety models into multi-dimensional behavior platforms. With precise distance metrics, customizable hardware, and automated tracking support, our systems empower scientists to generate replicable, high-resolution data.
Crawley, J. N. (1985). Exploratory behavior models of anxiety in mice. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 9(1), 37–44.
Bourin, M., & Hascoët, M. (2003). The mouse light/dark box test. European Journal of Pharmacology, 463(1-3), 55–65.
Kalueff, A. V., & Tuohimaa, P. (2005). The light/dark box test revisited: Not only an anxiety test. Behavioural Brain Research, 159(1), 55–66.
Written by researchers, for researchers—powered by Conduct Science.
Dr Louise Corscadden acts as Conduct Science’s Director of Science and Development and Academic Technology Transfer. Her background is in genetics, microbiology, neuroscience, and climate chemistry.
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