Peter Angela K, Crocini Claudia, Leinwand Leslie A
Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, Biofrontiers Institute, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA.
EMBO J. 2017 Aug 15;36(16):2311-2314. doi: 10.15252/embj.201797640. Epub 2017 Jul 10.
During the past century, research studies using animal models have contributed to numerous scientific discoveries and have been vital for the understanding of numerous biological processes, including disease. Over the past decades, the scientific community has defined a small number of model organisms that includes a few mammals, fish (mainly zebrafish), birds (mainly chicken), frogs, flies, and nematodes. Rodents are by far the most commonly employed laboratory animals in biomedical research. Mice share many biological similarities to humans and can be genetically manipulated to express mutations linked to human diseases. Mice and rats reproduce relatively quickly and have a short life span, which allows scientists to study progressive disorders, including aging. A large range of inbred mice strains enables accurate and reproducible experiments by decreasing the variability often associated with animal models and biological systems in general. Finally, mice are cost‐effective, small, and relatively easy to handle, transport, and house. All of these advantages combine to make mice the major species for recapitulating and studying human diseases. However, focusing exclusively on one or very few animal models may lead researchers to lose sight of other species with vastly different biology that might inform and affect our understanding of disease pathogenesis.
在过去的一个世纪里，使用动物模型的研究促成了众多科学发现，对于理解包括疾病在内的众多生物过程至关重要。在过去几十年里，科学界确定了少数几种模式生物，其中包括一些哺乳动物、鱼类（主要是斑马鱼）、鸟类（主要是鸡）、青蛙、苍蝇和线虫。啮齿动物是目前生物医学研究中最常用的实验动物。小鼠与人类有许多生物学上的相似之处，并且可以通过基因操作来表达与人类疾病相关的突变。小鼠和大鼠繁殖相对较快，寿命较短，这使得科学家能够研究包括衰老在内的进行性疾病。大量的近交系小鼠品系通过减少通常与动物模型和生物系统相关的变异性，实现了准确且可重复的实验。最后，小鼠具有成本效益、体型小，相对易于处理、运输和饲养。所有这些优点使得小鼠成为再现和研究人类疾病的主要物种。然而，仅专注于一种或极少数动物模型可能会导致研究人员忽视其他具有截然不同生物学特性的物种，而这些物种可能会为我们对疾病发病机制的理解提供信息并产生影响。
