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Self Administration Runway

SKU CS-958328

$2,390.00

IncludesStandard care

Linear runway apparatus for studying drug self-administration and reinforcement learning behaviors in mice and rats, featuring modular segments with integrated hurdles to assess motivational drive.

CE MarkedBAA available

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Louise Corscadden, PhD

Director of Science · ConductScience

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Key Specifications

Full details →

Model fit: Mouse, Rat
SKU family: CS-958328
Shipping box: 65.0 x 36.0 x 27.0 cm
Ordering: Online checkout and quote request available
Category: Behavioral Mazes
Build notes: Acrylic

Category: Behavioral Mazes

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The Self Administration Runway is a specialized behavioral apparatus designed for assessing drug self-administration behaviors and reinforcement learning in rodents. The system consists of a start box, goal box, and three interconnected runway segments that create a linear pathway for animals to traverse in pursuit of drug rewards or other reinforcers.

This apparatus enables researchers to study the motivational aspects of drug-seeking behavior by measuring the latency and persistence with which animals navigate the runway to reach the goal box where drug administration occurs. The modular design accommodates both mice and rats with species-specific dimensional configurations, while integrated hurdles in each runway segment provide controlled obstacles that require increased effort and motivation to overcome, allowing for precise assessment of drug-seeking intensity.

How It Works

The Self Administration Runway operates on principles of operant conditioning and spatial learning to assess drug-seeking motivation. Animals are placed in the start box and must navigate through three consecutive runway segments to reach the goal box where drug administration occurs. The apparatus leverages the natural tendency of rodents to seek rewards while requiring increasing effort expenditure through integrated hurdles.

Each runway segment contains two 4 cm height hurdles that serve as effort barriers, requiring animals to expend additional energy to progress toward the goal. This design allows researchers to measure both the latency to complete the runway and the willingness to overcome obstacles, providing quantitative metrics of motivational drive. The contrasting visual environments between start box (black walls with white stripes, polished floor) and goal box (white walls with black stripes, wire-mesh floor) facilitate spatial discrimination learning.

Data collection focuses on temporal metrics including start latency, segment traversal times, total completion latency, and failure rates. These parameters collectively provide a comprehensive assessment of the reinforcing properties of administered substances and the strength of conditioned drug-seeking behaviors.

Features & Benefits

Species-specific dimensional configurations

Accommodates both mice (180 cm total runway) and rats (240 cm total runway) with appropriate scaling for natural locomotor patterns and body size

Modular three-segment runway design

Enables flexible experimental configurations and allows for segment-specific behavioral analysis during drug-seeking progression

Integrated hurdle obstacles in each segment

Provides quantifiable effort barriers at 4 cm height to assess motivational drive and willingness to work for drug rewards

Contrasting visual environments

Start box features black walls with white stripes while goal box has white walls with black stripes, facilitating spatial discrimination learning

Wire-mesh goal box floor

Allows for drug delivery through floor-mounted systems while providing tactile cues to signal reward zone arrival

Guillotine door start box control

Provides precise trial initiation timing and prevents premature runway entry during inter-trial intervals

Acrylic construction throughout

Enables continuous visual monitoring of animal behavior while providing easy cleaning and chemical resistance for drug administration studies

Feature	This Product	Typical Alternative	Advantage
Runway Configuration	Three modular segments with 180-240 cm total length	Fixed single-chamber or two-chamber designs with limited pathway flexibility	Modular design allows for segment-specific behavioral analysis and flexible experimental configurations
Effort Barriers	Six integrated 4 cm hurdles across three segments	Fewer or no physical obstacles in pathway designs	Multiple effort barriers provide graded assessment of motivational drive throughout the drug-seeking sequence
Species Accommodation	Dedicated mouse and rat configurations with appropriate scaling	Single-size apparatus requiring adaptation for different species	Species-specific dimensions optimize natural locomotor patterns and behavioral expression
Environmental Contrast	Distinct start box (black/white stripes) and goal box (white/black stripes) visual environments	Uniform environmental conditions throughout apparatus	Visual discrimination cues facilitate spatial learning assessment and goal recognition
Floor Design Variation	Polished start box floor with wire-mesh goal box floor	Consistent flooring materials throughout apparatus	Tactile environmental differences provide additional spatial cues and accommodate drug delivery systems

This apparatus combines linear runway assessment with modular design flexibility and integrated effort barriers. The species-specific configurations and contrasting environmental zones support comprehensive evaluation of spatial learning and motivational components in drug self-administration paradigms.