Biological Factors Influencing the Mice Forced Swim Test

The forced swim test (FST), originally developed by Porsolt et al., is highly valuable for assessing the antidepressant-like effects of the majority of currently-available antidepressants. Lucki et al. modified some parameters of the traditional FST in order to facilitate the differentiation between serotonergic and noradrenergic classes of antidepressant drugs. In addition, the FST is one of the most commonly used models for assessing antidepressantlike behaviors in both rats and mice. Focus on the present neuroscience field, knockout and transgenic mice provide a tool for assessing the mechanisms of action of antidepressants, and the factors influencing these behavior in the FST should be taken into considerations. In this MiniReview, we reviewed several biological factors (e.g. strain, gender, age, susceptibility) that may influence mice behavior in the FST and attempt to describe those variables that should be considered when designing studies employing the FST. Biological Factors Influencing the Mice Forced Swim Test