Advanced Medical and Dental Institute, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 13200 Bertam, Penang, Malaysia.
Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, University of Calabar, Calabar, Nigeria; School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3800, Australia.
Neuroscience. 2018 Mar 15;374:323-325. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2018.01.062. Epub 2018 Feb 8.
Neuroscience research and training in many African countries are difficult due to funding and infrastructure deficit. This has resulted in few neuroscientists within Africa. However, invertebrates such as Drosophila and Caenorhabditis elegans could provide the perfect answer to these difficulties. These organisms are cheap, easy to handle and offer a comparable advantage over vertebrates in neuroscience research modeling because they have a simple nervous system and exhibit well-defined behaviors. Studies using invertebrates have helped to understand neurosciences and the complexes associated with it. If Africa wants to catch up with the rest of the world in neuroscience research, it needs to employ this innovative cost-effective approach in its research. To improve invertebrate neuroscience within the Africa continent, the authors advocated the establishment of invertebrate research centers either at regional or national level across Africa. Finally, there is also a need to provide public funding to consolidate the gains that have been made by not-for-profit international organizations over the years.
由于资金和基础设施的短缺，许多非洲国家的神经科学研究和培训都很困难。这导致非洲内部的神经科学家很少。然而，像果蝇和秀丽隐杆线虫这样的无脊椎动物可以为这些困难提供完美的答案。这些生物价格便宜，易于处理，并且在神经科学研究模型方面相对于脊椎动物具有相当大的优势，因为它们的神经系统简单，表现出明确的行为。使用无脊椎动物的研究有助于理解神经科学及其相关的复杂性。如果非洲想在神经科学研究方面赶上世界其他地区，就需要在其研究中采用这种创新的具有成本效益的方法。为了提高非洲大陆的无脊椎动物神经科学水平，作者主张在非洲各地建立区域或国家一级的无脊椎动物研究中心。最后，还需要提供公共资金，以巩固非营利性国际组织多年来取得的成果。
