Authors
Slivicki, R. A., Wang, H., Mwirigi, J. M., Kucz, K., Hua, H., Creed, M. C., Gereau, R. W.
Abstract
Behavioral scoring is central to preclinical pain research but is typically performed manually, which is inherently low-throughput and subject to variability between observers. Automated alternatives exist, but cost and programming expertise limit adoption beyond the laboratories that build them. Here we describe PixelPaws, an open-source platform combining a near-infrared imaging enclosure built from consumer parts for under $300, multi-camera acquisition software, a bundled pose-estimation network, and eight classifiers in a graphical user interface. We evaluated the platform across standard assays of pain, itch, and opioid withdrawal. Licking, scratching, and jumping classifiers were validated against trained human observers by leave-one-session-out evaluation. In the formalin assay, classifier-scored licking followed the expected biphasic time course and was reduced dose-dependently by oxycodone, with a phase 2 potency estimate comparable to blinded manual scoring. Chloroquine roughly tripled scratching, and naloxone precipitated a burst of jumping in oxycodone-treated mice. From the same recordings we derived a set of paw contour metrics. Contour intensity fell after formalin and tracked the oxycodone dose series, and contour area shifted toward symmetry after oxycodone in nerve-injured mice. Behavioral sequencing revealed distinct changes in the transi
Preprint server:
bioRxiv
The authors list and abstract were imported from bioRxiv on 26 Sep 2026.
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