Objective: Measure basal and maximal oxygen consumption (VO2b and VO2max) to assess aerobic capacity and exercise capacity in mice using forced progressive treadmill exercise
This is a Treadmill Exercise Test with VO2 Measurement protocol using mouse as the model organism. The procedure involves 6 procedural steps, 3 equipment items. Extracted from a 2013 paper published in Nature Medicine.
Model and subjects
mouse • Rev-erb-α knockout and wild-type littermates • unknown • Not specified • Not specified
Study window
~1.7 hours hands-on
Core workflow
Assess spontaneous locomotor activity • Measure basal oxygen consumption (VO2b) • Conduct forced progressive treadmill exercise
Primary readouts
Key equipment and reagents
Verified items
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Place mice in free wheel exercise apparatus and measure spontaneous locomotor activity as a baseline assessment of exercise capacity
Note: Performed on Rev-erb-α−/− mice and wild-type littermate controls
“Rev-erb-α−deficient (Rev-erb-α−/−) mice exhibited markedly reduced spontaneous locomotor activity in a free wheel exercise compared to wild-type littermates”
Measure oxygen consumption at rest to establish baseline aerobic capacity before exercise
Note: VO2b measured at rest showed no significant difference between genotypes
“VO2b measured at rest was not significantly different between the two genotypes”
Subject mice to forced progressive treadmill exercise with increasing intensity until exhaustion to measure maximal oxygen consumption
Note: Progressive protocol with intensity increasing until mice reach exhaustion
“We next assessed basal (VO2b) and maximal (VO2max) oxygen consumption, reflecting aerobic capacity, by submitting Rev-erb-α−/− mice to a forced, progressive treadmill exercise.”
Record oxygen consumption at exhaustion during the progressive treadmill exercise test
Note: VO2max was significantly lower in Rev-erb-α−/− mice compared to wild-type, resulting in >60% reduced aerobic capacity
“VO2max measured at exhaustion was significantly lower in Rev-erb-α−/− mice, resulting in a >60% reduced aerobic capacity during exercise.”
Perform endurance exercise test at 70% of each mouse's respective VO2max to assess exercise duration and distance capacity
Note: 50% of Rev-erb-α−/− mice stopped running within 50 min compared to only 20% of wild-type mice
“In a standard endurance exercise test performed at 70% of their respective VO2max, 50% of Rev-erb-α−/− mice, compared to only 20% of the wild-type mice, stopped running within 50 min”
Measure and record total running time and distance covered during the endurance exercise test
Note: Rev-erb-α−/− mice ran significantly shorter time and distance than wild-type littermates
“Rev-erb-α−/− mice ran for a significantly shorter time and distance than their wild-type littermates”
This section explains what the experiment is doing, which readouts matter, what the data artifacts usually look like, and how the analysis should flow from raw capture to reported result.
Measure basal and maximal oxygen consumption (VO2b and VO2max) to assess aerobic capacity and exercise capacity in mice using forced progressive treadmill exercise
Objective
Measure basal and maximal oxygen consumption (VO2b and VO2max) to assess aerobic capacity and exercise capacity in mice using forced progressive treadmill exercise
Subjects
From papermouse • Rev-erb-α knockout and wild-type littermates • unknown • Not specified • Not specified
Cohort notes
From paperRev-erb-α-deficient (Rev-erb-α−/−) mice compared to wild-type littermates (Rev-erb-α+/+)
Assess spontaneous locomotor activity (Not specified)
Measure basal oxygen consumption (VO2b) (Not specified)
Conduct forced progressive treadmill exercise (Until exhaustion)
Measure maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) (At point of exhaustion)
Basal oxygen consumption (VO2b) at rest
From paperNot specified in methods section
Artifact type
Endpoint measurements summarized by group or timepoint
Comparison focus
Compare endpoint magnitude between groups, timepoints, or both
Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) at exhaustion
From paperNot specified in methods section
Artifact type
Endpoint measurements summarized by group or timepoint
Comparison focus
Compare endpoint magnitude between groups, timepoints, or both
Aerobic capacity (calculated from VO2max)
From paperNot specified in methods section
Artifact type
Endpoint measurements summarized by group or timepoint
Comparison focus
Compare endpoint magnitude between groups, timepoints, or both
Spontaneous locomotor activity in free wheel exercise
From paperNot specified in methods section
Artifact type
Longitudinal gait metrics and per-animal performance tables
Comparison focus
Compare recovery trajectory across post-injury timepoints and treatment conditions
Basal oxygen consumption (VO2b) at rest
From paperRaw artifact
Per-sample or per-animal endpoint measurements collected during the experiment
Processed artifact
Structured table with cleaned measurements ready for comparison
Final reported form
Summary statistics and between-group or across-timepoint comparisons
Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) at exhaustion
From paperRaw artifact
Per-sample or per-animal endpoint measurements collected during the experiment
Processed artifact
Structured table with cleaned measurements ready for comparison
Final reported form
Summary statistics and between-group or across-timepoint comparisons
Aerobic capacity (calculated from VO2max)
From paperRaw artifact
Per-sample or per-animal endpoint measurements collected during the experiment
Processed artifact
Structured table with cleaned measurements ready for comparison
Final reported form
Summary statistics and between-group or across-timepoint comparisons
Spontaneous locomotor activity in free wheel exercise
From paperRaw artifact
Per-run gait capture with paw placement, timing, and stride features for each animal
Processed artifact
Cleaned gait metrics table and recovery trend summary across timepoints
Final reported form
Group comparisons of gait indices, stride metrics, or recovery curves
Acquisition
Collect raw experimental outputs with enough metadata to preserve sample identity, condition, and timing.
Preprocessing / cleaning
Not specified in methods section
Scoring or quantification
Quantify the primary readouts for this experiment: Basal oxygen consumption (VO2b) at rest; Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) at exhaustion; Aerobic capacity (calculated from VO2max); Spontaneous locomotor activity in free wheel exercise.
Statistical comparison
Statistical method not yet structured for this page.
Reporting output
Report representative outputs alongside summary comparisons for Basal oxygen consumption (VO2b) at rest, Maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) at exhaustion, Aerobic capacity (calculated from VO2max), Spontaneous locomotor activity in free wheel exercise.
Source links and direct wording from the methods section for validation and deeper review.
Citation
Estelle Woldt et al. (2013). Rev-erb-α modulates skeletal muscle oxidative capacity by regulating mitochondrial biogenesis and autophagy. Nature Medicine
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Source access
Jump back into the original paper or the methods evidence section when you need exact wording, exclusions, or method-specific caveats.
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Steps
6
Evidence Quotes
9
Protocol Items
3
Linked Products
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Canonical Sync
Pending
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Steps
6
Evidence
9
Specific Products
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Canonical Sync
Pending
What this score means
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Computed from the current experiment record updated Feb 28, 2026.
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