Water Maze Task
Objective: Assessment of spatial memory retention through probe trials measuring preference for target zone in rats with altered neurogenesis
This is a Water Maze Task protocol using rat as the model organism. The procedure involves 2 procedural steps, 1 equipment items, 1 materials. Extracted from a 2009 paper published in Learning & Memory.
Model and subjects
rat • adult male rats • male • adult
Study window
~2 week study window
Core workflow
Water maze acquisition phase • Probe trial testing
Primary readouts
- Preference for target zone in probe trials
- Time spent in target zone
- Spatial memory retention performance
Key equipment and reagents
Use this page as an execution guide, then fall back to the source paper whenever you need exact exclusions, dosing details, or assay-specific caveats.
Confirm first
- Verify the animal model, intervention setup, and collection timepoints against the source paper.
- Check that every direct vendor link matches the exact specification your lab plans to run.
Use the page like this
- Work through the protocol steps in order and use the inline vendor chips only when you need to source or verify an item.
- Jump to Experimental Context for readouts, data shape, and analysis flow before planning downstream analysis.
Protocol Steps
Start here. The step list is optimized for running the experiment, with direct vendor links available inline when you need to source a cited item.
Water maze acquisition phase
Rats undergo training to locate the hidden platform in the water maze
Note: Acquisition phase precedes probe trials
View evidence from paper
“long-term retention of spatial memory in the water maze task”
Probe trial testing
Probe trials conducted to measure spatial memory retention and preference for target zone
Note: Conducted more than 2 weeks after acquisition phase
View evidence from paper
“rats with substantially reduced levels of newborn neurons showed less preference for the target zone in probe trials >2 wk after acquisition compared with control rats”