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- First domesticated from wild Norway rats over 170 years ago (Richter, 1959), today laboratory rats owe their popularity as a model organism largely due to their widespread availability, low breeding costs, short reproductive cycle and ability to thrive in captive environments.
elifesciences.org/articles/50651The Natural History of Model Organisms: The Norway rat, from ...
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Oct 19, 2023 · Rats are preferred for experimentation because they are remarkably similar to humans. According to Koshland Science Museum, rats share a staggering 90% of genes with humans. This is why they represent the best way to test the nature of different gene interactions in humans.
- 4 min
Feb 1, 2022 · The Wistar outbred albino rat is perhaps the most popular rat model due to its multi-purpose characteristics, making it a powerful species for medical research into infectious diseases, or as a surgical model. Then there is the Sprague Dawley, an outbred albino preferred for behavioral studies.
Jul 14, 2021 · After a genetic revolution in the 80s, mice overtook rats as the laboratory animal of choice for many researchers. But in recent years, the gene editing capabilities that had lagged a little...
- Ellen P. Neff
- ellen.neff@us.nature.com
- 2021
The Wistar rat is currently one of the most popular rats used for laboratory research. It is characterized by its wide head, long ears, and a tail length that is always less than its body length. The Sprague Dawley and Long–Evans were developed from Wistars.
In 2004, the lab rat became the latest animal to spill its genetic secrets, and after man and mouse, was the third mammal to have its genome sequenced. This will further raise the rat's high profile in medical research, where it is the second most commonly used mammal after the mouse.
Why do we use rats? The laboratory rat has made invaluable contributions to cardiovascular medicine, neural regeneration, wound healing, diabetes, transplantation, behavioural studies and space motion sickness research. Rats have also been widely used to test drug efficacy and safety.
Feb 27, 2019 · For decades, lab rats and mice have been used to make great scientific and medical advances, from cancer drugs and HIV antiretrovirals to the yearly flu vaccine.
