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Articles making an impact in Animal Science and Zoology

Discover impactful articles published in our animal science and zoology journal portfolio with our High-Impact Research collections, featuring the most read, most cited, and most discussed articles published in recent years, which have caught the interest of your peers.

Animal Science

Ornithology.

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BioScience presents timely and authoritative overviews of current research in biology, accompanied by essays and discussion sections on education, public policy, history, and the conceptual underpinnings of the biological sciences.

Open access, Current Zoology  publishes review articles and research papers in the fields of ecology, evolution and behaviour.

Integrative and Comparative Biology  publishes forward-looking reviews, synthesis, perspectives and empirical articles in integrative, comparative and organismal biology.

Animal Frontiers publishes discussion and position papers that present international perspectives on high-impact, global issues in animal agriculture. 

Journal of Animal Science provides new knowledge and perspectives across a range of topics in both animal production and fundamental aspects of genetics, nutrition, physiology, and the preparation and utilization of animal products.

Translational Animal Science encompasses a broad scope of research topics in animal science, focusing on translating basic science to innovation.

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Journal of Molluscan Studies  publishes research on the biology of molluscs, including the developing subjects of molecular genetics, cladistic phylogenetics and ecophysiology, as well as ecological, behavioural and systematic malacology.

Annals of the Entomological Society of America publishes cutting-edge research, reviews, and collections on a common topic of broad interest, across the entomological disciplines.

Arthropod Management Tests publishes short reports from a single year on a routine screening test for management of arthropods that may be harmful or beneficial.

Environmental Entomology  reports on the interaction of insects with the biological, chemical, and physical aspects of their environment.

Insect Systematics and Diversity publishes original research on systematics, evolution, and biodiversity of insects and related arthropods. 

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Open Access

Essays articulate a specific perspective on a topic of broad interest to scientists.

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A guide to open science practices for animal research

Contributed equally to this work with: Kai Diederich, Kathrin Schmitt

Affiliation German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, German Centre for the Protection of Laboratory Animals (Bf3R), Berlin, Germany

* E-mail: [email protected]

• Kai Diederich, 
• Kathrin Schmitt, 
• Philipp Schwedhelm, 
• Bettina Bert, 
• Céline Heinl

Published: September 15, 2022

• https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001810
• Reader Comments

Translational biomedical research relies on animal experiments and provides the underlying proof of practice for clinical trials, which places an increased duty of care on translational researchers to derive the maximum possible output from every experiment performed. The implementation of open science practices has the potential to initiate a change in research culture that could improve the transparency and quality of translational research in general, as well as increasing the audience and scientific reach of published research. However, open science has become a buzzword in the scientific community that can often miss mark when it comes to practical implementation. In this Essay, we provide a guide to open science practices that can be applied throughout the research process, from study design, through data collection and analysis, to publication and dissemination, to help scientists improve the transparency and quality of their work. As open science practices continue to evolve, we also provide an online toolbox of resources that we will update continually.

Citation: Diederich K, Schmitt K, Schwedhelm P, Bert B, Heinl C (2022) A guide to open science practices for animal research. PLoS Biol 20(9): e3001810. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001810

Copyright: © 2022 Diederich et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Funding: The authors received no specific funding for this work.

Competing interests: I have read the journal’s policy and the authors of this manuscript have the following competing interests: All authors are employed at the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment and part of the German Centre for the Protection of Laboratory Animals (Bf3R) which developed and hosts animalstudyregistry.org , a preregistration platform for animal studies and animaltestinfo.de, a database for non-technical project summaries (NTS) of approved animal study protocols within Germany.

Abbreviations: CC, Creative Commons; CIRS-LAS, critical incident reporting system in laboratory animal science; COVID-19, Coronavirus Disease 2019; DOAJ, Directory of Open Access Journals; DOI, digital object identifier; EDA, Experimental Design Assistant; ELN, electronic laboratory notebook; EU, European Union; IMSR, International Mouse Strain Resource; JISC, Joint Information Systems Committee; LIMS, laboratory information management system; MGI, Mouse Genome Informatics; NC3Rs, National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research; NTS, non-technical summary; RRID, Research Resource Identifier

Introduction

Over the past decade, the quality of published scientific literature has been repeatedly called into question by the failure of large replication studies or meta-analyses to demonstrate sufficient translation from experimental research into clinical successes [ 1 – 5 ]. At the same time, the open science movement has gained more and more advocates across various research areas. By sharing all of the information collected during the research process with colleagues and with the public, scientists can improve collaborations within their field and increase the reproducibility and trustworthiness of their work [ 6 ]. Thus, the International Reproducibility Networks have called for more open research [ 7 ].

However, open science practices have not been adopted to the same degree in all research areas. In psychology, which was strongly affected by the so-called reproducibility crisis, the open science movement initiated real practical changes leading to a broad implementation of practices such as preregistration or sharing of data and material [ 8 – 10 ]. By contrast, biomedical research is still lagging behind. Open science might be of high value for research in general, but in translational biomedical research, it is an ethical obligation. It is the responsibility of the scientist to transparently share all data collected to ensure that clinical research can adequately evaluate the risks and benefits of a potential treatment. When Russell and Burch published “The Principles of Humane Experimental Technique” in 1959, scientists started to implement their 3Rs principle to answer the ethical dilemma of animal welfare in the face of scientific progress [ 11 ]. By replacing animal experiments wherever possible, reducing the number of animals to a strict minimum, and refining the procedures where animals have still to be used, this ethical dilemma was addressed. However, in recent years, whether the 3Rs principle is sufficient to fully address ethical concerns about animal experiments has been questioned [ 12 ].

Most people tolerate the use of animals for scientific purposes only under the basic assumption that the knowledge gained will advance research in crucial areas. This implies that performed experiments are reported in a way that enables peers to benefit from the collected data. However, recent studies suggest that a large proportion of animal experiments are never actually published. For example, scientists working within the European Union (EU) have to write an animal study protocol for approval by the competent authorities of the respective country before performing an animal experiment [ 13 ]. In these protocols, scientists have to describe the planned study and justify every animal required for the project. By searching for publications resulting from approved animal study protocols from 2 German University Medical Centers, Wieschowski and colleagues found that only 53% of approved protocols led to a publication after 6 years [ 14 ]. Using a similar approach, Van der Naald and colleagues determined a publication rate of 60% at the Utrecht Medical Center [ 15 ]. In a follow-up survey, the respective researchers named so-called “negative” or null-hypothesis results as the main cause for not publishing outcomes [ 15 ]. The current scientific system is shaped by publishers, funders, and institutions and motivates scientists to publish novel, surprising, and positive results, revealing one of the many structural problems that the numerous efforts towards open science initiatives are targeting. Non-publication not only strongly contradicts ethical values, but also it compromises the quality of published literature by leading to overestimation of effect sizes [ 16 , 17 ]. Furthermore, publications of animal studies too often show poor reporting that strongly impairs the reproducibility, validity, and usefulness of the results [ 18 ]. Unfortunately, the idea that negative or equivocal findings can also contribute to the gain of scientific knowledge is frequently neglected.

So far, the scientific community using animals has shown limited resonance to the open science movement. Due to the strong controversy surrounding animal experiments, scientists have been reluctant to share information on the topic. Additionally, translational research is highly competitive and researchers tend to be secretive about their ideas until they are ready for publication or patent [ 19 , 20 ]. However, this missing openness could also point to a lack of knowledge and training on the many open science options that are available and suitable for animal research. Researchers have to be convinced of the benefits of open science practices, not only for science in general, but also for the individual researcher and each single animal. Yet, the key players in the research system are already starting to value open science practices. An increasing number of journals request open sharing of data, funders pay for open access publications and institutions consider open science practices in hiring decisions. Open science practices can improve the quality of work by enabling valuable scientific input from peers at the early stages of research projects. Furthermore, the extended communication that open science practices offer can draw attention to research and help to expand networks of collaborators and lead to new project opportunities or follow-up positions. Thus, open science practices can be a driver for careers in academia, particularly those of early career researchers.

Beyond these personal benefits, improving transparency in translational biomedical research can boost scientific progress in general. By bringing to light all the recorded research outputs that until now have remained hidden, the publication bias and the overestimation of effect sizes can be reduced [ 17 ]. Large-scale sharing of data can help to synthesize research outputs in preclinical research that will enable better decision-making for clinical research. Disclosing the whole research process will help to uncover systematic problems and support scientists in thoroughly planning their studies. In the long run, we predict that the implementation of open science practices will lead to the use of fewer animals in unintentionally repeated experiments that previously showed unreported negative results or in the establishment of methods by avoiding experimental dead ends that are often not published. More collaborations and sharing of materials and methods can further reduce the number of animal experiments used for the implementation of new techniques.

Open science can and should be implemented at each step of the research process ( Fig 1 ). A vast number of tools are already provided that were either directly conceptualized for animal research or can be adapted easily. In this Essay, we provide an overview of open science tools that improve transparency, reliability, and animal welfare in translational in vivo biomedical research by supporting scientists to clearly communicate their research and by supporting collaborative working. Table 1 lists the most prominent open science tools we discuss, together with their respective links. We have structured this Essay to guide you through which tools can be used at each stage of the research process, from planning and conducting experiments, through to analyzing data and communicating the results. However, many of these tools can be used at many different steps. Table 1 has been deposited on Zenodo and will be updated continuously [ 21 ].

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Application of open science practices at each step of the research process can maximize the impact of performed animal experiments. The implementation of these practices will lead to less time pressure at the end of a project. Due to the connection of most of these open science practices, spending more time in the planning phase and during the conduction of experiments will save time during the data analysis and publication of the study. Indeed, consulting reporting guidelines early on, preregistering a statistical plan, and writing down crucial experimental details in an electronic lab notebook, will strongly accelerate the writing of a manuscript. If protocols or even electronic lab notebooks were made public, just citing these would simplify the writing of publications. Similarly, if a data management plan is well designed before starting data collection, analyzing, and depositing data in a public repository, as is increasingly required, will be fast. NTS, non-technical summary.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001810.g001

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001810.t001

Planning the study

Transparent practices can be adopted at every stage of the research process. However, to ensure full effectivity, it is highly recommended to engage in detailed planning before the start of the experiment. This can prevent valuable time from being lost at the end of the study due to careless decisions being made at the beginning. Clarifying data management at the start of a project can help avoiding filing chaos that can be very time consuming to untangle. Keeping clear track of a project and study design will also help if new colleagues are included later on in the project or if entire project parts are handed over. In addition, all texts written on the rationale and hypothesis of the study or method descriptions, or design schemes created during the planning phase can be used in the final publications ( Fig 1 ). Similarly, information required for preregistration of animal studies or for reporting according to the ARRIVE guidelines are an extension of the details required for ethical approval [ 22 , 23 ]. Thus, the time burden within the planning phase is often overestimated. Furthermore, the thorough planning of experiments can avoid the unnecessary use of animals by preventing wrong avenues from being pursued.

Implementing open scientific practices at the beginning of a project does not mean that the idea and study plan must be shared immediately, but rather is critical for making the entire workflow transparent at the end of the project. However, optional early sharing of information can enable peers to give feedback on the study plan. Studies potentially benefit more from this a priori input than they would from the classical a posteriori peer-review process.

Most people perceive guidelines as advice that instructs on how to do something. However, it is sometimes useful to consider the term in its original meaning; “the line that guides us”. In this sense, following guidelines is not simply fulfilling a duty, but is a process that can help to design a sound research study and, as such, guidelines should be consulted at the planning stage of a project. The PREPARE guidelines are a list of important points that should be thought-out before starting a study involving animal experiments in order to reduce the waste of animals, promote alternatives, and increase the reproducibility of research and testing [ 24 ]. The PREPARE checklist helps to thoroughly plan a study and focuses on improving the communication and collaboration between all involved participants of the study (i.e., animal caretakers and scientists). Indeed, open science begins with the communication within a research facility. It is currently available in 33 languages and the responsible team from Norecopa, Norway’s 3R-center, takes requests for translations into further languages.

The UK Reproducibility Network has also published several guiding documents (primers) on important topics for open and reproducible science. These address issues such as data sharing [ 25 ], open access [ 26 ], open code and software [ 27 ], and preprints [ 28 ], as well as preregistration and registered reports [ 27 ]. Consultation of these primers is not only helpful in the relevant phases of the experiment but is also encouraged in the planning phase.

Although the ARRIVE guidelines are primarily a reporting guideline specifically designed for preparing a publication containing animal data, they can also support researchers when planning their experiments [ 22 , 23 ]. Going through the ARRIVE website, researchers will find tools and explanations that can support them in planning their experiments [ 29 ]. Consulting the ARRIVE checklist at the beginning of a project can help in deciding what details need to be documented during conduction of the experiments. This is particularly advisable, given that compliance to ARRIVE is still poor [ 18 ].

Experimental design

To maximize the validity of performed experiments and the knowledge gained, designing the study well is crucial. It is important that the chosen animal species reflects the investigated disease well and that basic characteristics of the animal, such as sex or age, are considered carefully [ 30 ]. The Canadian Institutes of Health Research provides a collection of resources on the integration of sex and gender in biomedical research with animals, including tips and tools for researchers and reviewers [ 31 ]. Additionally, it is advisable to avoid unnecessary standardization of biological and environmental factors that can reduce the external validity of results [ 32 ]. Meticulous statistical planning can further optimize the use of animals. Free to use online tools for calculating sample sizes such as G*Power or the inVivo software package for R can further support animal researchers in designing their statistical plan [ 33 , 34 ]. Randomization for the allocation of groups can be supported with specific tools for scientists like Research Randomizer, but also by simple online random number generators [ 35 ]. Furthermore, it might be advisable when designing the study to incorporate pathological analyses into the experimental plan. Optimal planning of tissue collection, performance of pathological procedures according to accepted best practices, and use of optimal pathological analysis and reporting methods can add some extra knowledge that would otherwise be lost. This can improve the reproducibility and quality of translational biomedicine, especially, but not exclusively, in animal studies with morphological endpoints. In all animal studies, unexpected deaths in experimental animals can occur and be the cause of lost data or missed opportunities to identify health problems [ 36 , 37 ].

To support researchers in designing their animal research, the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) has also developed the Experimental Design Assistant (EDA) [ 38 , 39 ]. This online tool helps researchers to better structure in vivo research by creating detailed schemes of the study design. It provides feedback on the entered design, drawing researcher’s attention to crucial decisions in the project. The resulting schemes can be used to transparently share the study design by uploading it into a study preregistration, enclosing it in a grant application, or submitting it with a final manuscript. The EDA can be used for different study designs in diverse scenarios and helps to communicate researcher plans to others [ 40 ]. The EDA might be particularly of interest to clarify very complex study designs involving multiple experimental groups. Working with the EDA might appear rather complex in the beginning, but the NC3R provides regular webinars that can help to answer any questions that arise.

Preregistration

Preregistration is an effective tool to improve the quality and transparency of research. To preregister their work, scientists must determine crucial details of the study before starting any experiment. Changes occurring during a study can be outlined at the end. A preregistered study plan should include at least the hypothesis and determine all the parameters that are known in advance. A description of the planned study design and statistical analysis will enable reviewers and peers to better retrace the workflow. It can prevent the intentional use of the flexibility of analysis to reach p -values under a certain significance level (e.g., p-hacking or HARKing (Hypothesizing After Results are Known)). With preregistration, scientists can also claim their idea at an early stage of their research with a citable individual identifier that labels the idea as their own. Some open preregistration platforms also provide a digital object identifier (DOI), which makes the registered study citable. Three public registries actively encourage the preregistration of animal studies conducted around the world: OSF registry, preclinicaltrials.eu, and animalstudyregistry.org [ 41 – 45 ]. Scientists can choose the registry according to their needs. Preregistering a study in a public registry supports scientists in planning their study and later to critically reevaluate their own work and assess its limitations and potentials.

As an alternative to public registries, researchers can also submit their study plan to one of hundreds of journals already publishing registered reports, including many journals open to animal research [ 8 ]. A submitted registered report passes 2 steps of peer review. In the first step, reviewers comment on the idea and the study design. After an “in-principle-acceptance,” researchers can conduct their study as planned. If the authors conduct the experiments as described in the accepted study protocol, the journal will publish the final study regardless of the outcome. This might be an attractive option, especially for early career researchers, as a manuscript is published at the beginning of a project with the guarantee of a future final publication.

The benefits of preregistration can already be observed in clinical research, where registration has been mandatory for most trials for more than 20 years. Preregistration in clinical research has helped to make known what has been tested and not just what worked and was published, and the implementation of trial registration has strongly reduced the number of publications reporting significant treatment effects [ 46 ]. In animal research, with its unrealistically high percentage of positive results, preregistration seems to be particularly worthwhile.

Research data management

To get the most out of performed animal experiments, effective sharing of data at the end of the study is essential. Sharing research data optimally is complex and needs to be prepared in advance. Thus, data management can be seen as one part of planning a study thoroughly. Many funders have recognized the value of the original research data and request a data management plan from applicants in advance [ 25 , 47 ]. Various freely available tools such as DMPTool or DMPonline already exist to design a research data management plan that complies to the requirements of different funders [ 48 , 49 ]. The data management plan defines the types of data collected and describes the handling and names responsible persons throughout the data lifecycle. This includes collecting the data, analyzing, archiving, and sharing it. Finally, a data management plan enables long-term access and the possibility for reuse by peers. Developing such a plan, whether it is required by funders or not, will later simplify the application of the FAIR data principle (see section on the FAIR data principle). The Longwood Medical Area Research Data Management Working Group from the Harvard Medical School developed a checklist to assist researchers in optimally managing their data throughout the data lifecycle [ 50 ]. Similarly, the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) provides a great research data management toolkit including a checklist for researchers planning their project [ 51 ]. Consulting this checklist in the planning phase of a project can prevent common errors in research data management.

Non-technical project summary

One instrument specifically conceived to create transparency on animal research for the general public is the so-called non-technical project summary (NTS). All animal protocols approved within the EU must be accompanied by these comprehensible summaries. NTSs are intended to inform the public about ongoing animal experiments. They are anonymous and include information on the objectives and potential benefits of the project, the expected harm, the number of animals, the species, and a statement of compliance with the requirements of the 3Rs principle. However, beyond simply informing the public, NTSs can also be used for meta-research to help identify new research areas with an increased need for new 3R technologies [ 52 , 53 ]. NTSs become an excellent tool to appropriately communicate the scientific value of the approved protocol and for meta-scientists to generate added value by systematically analyzing theses summaries if they fulfill a minimum quality threshold [ 54 , 55 ]. In 2021, the EU launched the ALURES platform ( Table 1 ), where NTSs from all member states are published together, opening the opportunities for EU-wide meta-research. NTSs are, in contrast to other open science practices, mandatory in the EU. However, instead of thinking of them as an annoying duty, it might be worth thoroughly drafting the NTS to support the goals of more transparency towards the public, enabling an open dialogue and reducing extreme opinions.

Conducting the experiments

Once the experiments begin, documentation of all necessary details is essential to ensure the transparency of the workflow. This includes methodological details that are crucial for replicating experiments, but also failed attempts that could help peers to avoid experiments that do not work in the future. All information should be stored in such a way that it can be found easily and shared later. In this area, many new tools have emerged in recent years ( Table 1 ). These tools will not only make research transparent for colleagues, but also help to keep track of one’s own research and improve internal collaboration.

Electronic laboratory notebooks

Electronic laboratory notebooks (ELNs) are an important pillar of research data management and open science. ELNs facilitate the structured and harmonized documentation of the data generation workflow, ensure data integrity, and keep track of all modifications made to the original data based on an audit trail option. Moreover, ELNs simplify the sharing of data and support collaborations within and outside the research group. Methodological details and research data become searchable and traceable. There is an extensive amount of literature providing advice on the selection and the implementation process of an ELN depending on the specific needs and research area and its discussion would be beyond the scope of this Essay [ 56 – 58 ]. Some ELNs are connected to a laboratory information management system (LIMS) that provides an animal module supporting the tracking of animal details [ 59 ]. But as research involving animals is highly heterogeneous, this might not be the only decision point and we cannot recommend a specific ELN that is suitable for all animal research.

ELNs are already established in the pharmaceutical industry and their use is on the rise among academics as well. However, due to concerns around costs for licenses, data security, and loss of flexibility, many research institutions still fear the expenses that the introduction of such a system would incur [ 56 ]. Nevertheless, an increasing number of academic institutions are implementing ELNs and appreciating the associated benefits [ 60 ]. If your institution already has an ELN, it might be easiest to just use the option available in the research environment. If not, the Harvard Medical School provides an extensive and updated overview of various features of different ELNs that can support scientists in choosing the appropriate one for their research [ 61 ]. There are many commercial ELN products, which may be preferred when the administrative workload should be outsourced to a large extent. However, open-source products such as eLabFTW or open BIS provide a greater opportunity for customization to meet specific needs of individual research institutions [ 62 – 64 ]. A huge number of options are available depending on the resources and the features required. Some scientists might prefer generic note taking tools such as Evernote or just a simple Word document that offers infinite flexibility, but specific ELNs can further support good record keeping practice by providing immutability, automated backups, standardized methods, and protocols to follow. Clearly defining the specific requirements expected might help to choose an adequate system that would improve the quality of the record compared to classical paper laboratory notebooks.

Sharing protocols

Adequate sharing of methods in translational biomedical sciences is key to reproducibility. Several repositories exist that simplify the publication and exchange of protocols. Writing down methods at the end of the project bears the risk that crucial details might be missing [ 65 ]. On protocols.io, scientists can note all methodological details of a procedure, complete them with uploaded documents, and keep them for personal use or share them with collaborators [ 66 ]. Authors can also decide at any point in time to make their protocol public. Protocols published on protocols.io receive a DOI and become citable; they can be commented on by peers and adapted according to the needs of the individual researcher. Protocol.io files from established protocols can also be submitted together with some context and sample datasets to PLOS ONE , where it can be peer-reviewed and potentially published [ 67 , 68 ]. Depending on the affiliation of the researchers to academia or industry and on an internal or public sharing of files, protocols.io can be free of charge or come with costs. Other journals also encourage their authors to deposit their protocols in a freely accessible repository, such as protocol exchange from Nature portfolio [ 69 ]. Another option might be to separately submit a protocol that was validated by its use in an already published research article to an online and peer-reviewed journal specific for research protocols, such as Bio-Protocol. A multitude of journals, including eLife and Science already collaborate with Bio-Protocol and recommend authors to publish the method in Bio-Protocol [ 70 ]. Bio-Protocol has no submission fees and is freely available to all readers. Both protocols.io and Bio-Protocol allow the illustration of complex scientific methods by uploading videos to published protocols. In addition, protocols can be deposited in a general research repository such as the Open Science Framework (OSF repository) and referenced in appropriate publications.

Sharing critical incidents

Sharing critical or even adverse events that occur in the context of animal experimentation can help other scientists to avoid committing the same mistakes. The system of sharing critical incidents is already established in clinical practice and helps to improve medical care [ 71 , 72 ]. The online platform critical incident reporting system in laboratory animal science (CIRS-LAS) represents the first preclinical equivalent to these clinical systems [ 73 ]. With this web-based tool, critical incidents in animal research can be reported anonymously without registration. An expert panel helps to analyze the incident to encourage an open dialogue. Critical incident reporting is still very marginal in animal research and performed procedures are very variable. These factors make a systemic analysis and a targeted search of incidence difficult. However, it may be of special interest for methods that are broadly used in animal research such as anesthesia. Indeed, a broad feed of this system with data on errors occurring in standard procedures today could help avoid critical incidences in the future and refine animal experiments.

Sharing animals, organs, and tissue

When we think about open science, sharing results and data are often in focus. However, sharing material is also part of a collaborative and open research culture that could help to greatly reduce the number of experimental animals used. When an animal is killed to obtain specific tissue or organs, the remainder is mostly discarded. This may constitute a wasteful practice, as surplus tissue can be used by other researchers for different analyses. More animals are currently killed as surplus than are used in experiments, demonstrating the potential for sharing these animals [ 74 , 75 ].

Sharing information on generated surplus is therefore not only economical, but also an effective way to reduce the number of animals used for scientific purposes. The open-source software Anishare is a straightforward way for breeders of genetically modified lines to promote their surplus offspring or organs within an institution [ 76 ]. The database AniMatch ( Table 1 ) connects scientists within Europe who are offering tissue or organs with scientists seeking this material. Scientists already sharing animal organs can support this process by describing it in publications and making peers aware of this possibility [ 77 ]. Specialized research communities also allow sharing of animal tissue or animal-derived products worldwide that are typically used in these fields on a collaborative basis via the SEARCH-framework [ 78 , 79 ]. Depositing transgenic mice lines into one of several repositories for mouse strains can help to further minimize efforts in producing new transgenic lines and most importantly reduce the number of surplus animals by supporting the cryoconservation of mouse lines. The International Mouse Strain Resource (IMSR) can be used to help find an adequate repository or to help scientists seeking a specific transgenic line find a match [ 80 ].

Analyzing the data

Animal researchers have to handle increasingly complex data. Imaging, electrophysiological recording, or automated behavioral tracking, for example, produce huge datasets. Data can be shared as raw numerical output but also as images, videos, sounds, or other forms from which raw numerical data can be generated. As the heterogeneity and the complexity of research data increases, infinite possibilities for analysis emerge. Transparently reporting how the data were processed will enable peers to better interpret reported results. To get the most out of performed animal experiments, it is crucial to allow other scientists to replicate the analysis and adapt it to their research questions. It is therefore highly recommended to use formats and tools during the analysis that allow a straightforward exchange of code and data later on.

Transparent coding

The use of non-transparent analysis codes have led to a lack of reproducibility of results [ 81 ]. Sharing code is essential for complex analysis and enables other researchers to reproduce results and perform follow-up studies, and citable code gives credit for the development of new algorithms ( Table 1 ). Jupyter Notebooks are a convenient way to share data science pipelines that may use a variety of coding languages, including like Python, R or Matlab, and also share the results of analyses in the form of tables, diagrams, images, and videos. Notebooks contain source code and can be published or collaboratively shared on platforms like GitHub or GitLab, where version control of source code is implemented. The data-archiving tool Zenodo can be used to archive a repository on GitHub and create a DOI for the archive. Thereby contents become citable. Using free and open-source programming language like R or Python will increase the number of potential researchers that can work with the published code. Best practice for research software is to publish the source code with a license that allows modification and redistribution.

Choice of data visualization

Choosing the right format for the visualization of data can increase its accessibility to a broad scientific audience and enable peers to better judge the validity of the results. Studies based on animal research often work with very small sample sizes. Visualizing these data in histograms may lead to an overestimation of the outcomes. Choosing the right dot plots that makes all recorded points visible and at the same time focusses on the summary instead of the individual points can further improve the intuitive understanding of a result. If the sample size is too low, it might not be meaningful to visualize error bars. A variety of freely available tools already exists that can support scientists in creating the most appropriate graphs for their data [ 82 ]. In particular, when representing microscopy results or heat maps, it should be kept in mind that a large part of the population cannot perceive the classical red and green representation [ 83 ]. Opting for the color-blind safe color maps and checking images with free tools such as color oracle ( Table 1 ) can increase the accessibility of graphs. Multiple journals have already addressed flaws in data visualization and have introduced new policies that will accelerate the uptake of transparent representation of results.

Publication of all study outcomes

Open science practices have received much attention in the past few years when it comes to publication of the results. However, it is important to emphasize that although open science tools have their greatest impact at the end of the project, good study preparation and sharing of the study plan and data early on can greatly increase the transparency at the end.

The FAIR data principle

To maximize the impact and outcome of a study, and to make the best long-term use of data generated through animal experiments, researchers should publish all data collected during their research according to the FAIR data principle. That means the data should be findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable. The FAIR principle is thus an extension of open access publishing. Data should not only be published without paywalls or other access restrictions, but also in such a manner that they can be reused and further processed by others. For this, legal as well as technical requirements must be met by the data. To achieve this, the GoFAIR initiative has developed a set of principles that should be taken into account as early as at the data collection stage [ 49 , 84 ]. In addition to extensively described and machine-readable metadata, these principles include, for example, the application of globally persistent identifiers, the use of open file formats, and standardized communication protocols to ensure that humans and machines can easily download the data. A well-chosen repository to upload the data is then just the final step to publish FAIR data.

FAIR data can strongly increase the knowledge gained from performed animal experiments. Thus, the same data can be analyzed by different researchers and could be combined to obtain larger sample sizes, as already occurs in the neuroimaging community, which works with comparable datasets [ 85 ]. Furthermore, the sharing of data enables other researchers to analyze published datasets and estimate measurement reliabilities to optimize their own data collection [ 86 , 87 ]. This will help to improve the translation from animal research into clinics and simultaneously reduce the number of animal experiment in future.

Reporting guidelines

In preclinical research, the ARRIVE guidelines are the current state of the art when it comes to reporting data based on animal experiments [ 22 , 23 ]. The ARRIVE guidelines have been endorsed by more than 1,000 journals who ask that scientists comply with them when reporting their outcomes. Since the ARRIVE guidelines have not had the expected impact on the transparency of reporting in animal research publications, a more rigorous update has been developed to facilitate their application in practice (ARRIVE 2.0 [ 23 ]). We believe that the ARRIVE guidelines can be more effective if they are implemented at a very early stage of the project (see section on guidelines). Some more specialized reporting guidelines have also emerged for individual research fields that rely on animal studies, such as endodontology [ 88 ]. The equator network collects all guidelines and makes them easily findable with their search tool on their website ( Table 1 ). MERIDIAN also offers a 1-stop shop for all reporting guidelines involving the use of animals across all research sectors [ 89 ]. It is thus worth checking for new reporting guidelines before preparing a manuscript to maximize the transparency of described experiments.

Identifiers

Persistent identifiers for published work, authors, or resources are key for making public data findable by search engines and are thus a prerequisite for compliance to FAIR data principles. The most common identifier for publications will be a DOI, which makes the work citable. A DOI is a globally unique string assigned by the International DOI Foundation to identify content permanently and provide a persistent link to its location on the Internet. An ORCID ID is used as a personal persistent identifier and is recommendable to unmistakably identify an author ( Table 1 ). This will avoid confusions between authors with the same name or in the case of name changes or changes of affiliation. Research Resource Identifiers (RRID) are unique ID numbers that help to transparently report research resources. RRID also apply to animals to clearly identify the species used. RRID help avoid confusion between different names or changing names of genetic lines and, importantly, make them machine findable. The RRID Portal helps scientists find a specific RRID or create one if necessary ( Table 1 ). In the context of genetically altered animal lines, correct naming is key. The Mouse Genome Informatics (MGI) Database is the authoritative source of official names for mouse genes, alleles, and strains ([ 90 ]).

Preprint publication

Preprints have undergone unprecedented success, particularly during the height of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic when the need for rapid dissemination of scientific knowledge was critical. The publication process for scientific manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals usually requires a considerable amount of time, ranging from a few months to several years, mainly due to the lengthy review process and inefficient editorial procedures [ 91 , 92 ]. Preprints typically precede formal publication in scientific journals and, thus, do not go through a peer review process, thus, facilitating the prompt open dissemination of important scientific findings within the scientific community. However, submitted papers are usually screened and checked for plagiarism. Preprints are assigned a DOI so they can be cited. Once a preprint is published in a journal, its status is automatically updated on the preprint server. The preprint is linked to the publication via CrossRef and mentioned accordingly on the website of the respective preprint platform.

After initial skepticism, most publishers now allow papers to be posted on preprint servers prior to submission. An increasing number of journals even allow direct submission of a preprint to their peer review process. The US National Institutes of Health and the Wellcome Trust, among other funders, also encourage prepublication and permit researchers to cite preprints in their grant applications. There are now numerous preprint repositories for different scientific disciplines. BioASAP provides a searchable database for preprint servers that can help in identifying the one that best matches an individual’s needs [ 93 ]. The most popular repository for animal research is bioRxiv, which is hosted by the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory ( Table 1 ).

The early exchange of scientific results is particularly important for animal research. This acceleration of the publication process can help other scientists to adapt their research or could even prevent animal experiments if other scientists become aware that an experiment has already been done before starting their own. In addition, preprints can help to increase the visibility of research. Journal articles that have a corresponding preprint publication have higher citation and Altmetric counts than articles without preprint [ 94 ]. In addition, the publication of preprints can help to combat publication bias, which represents a major problem in animal research [ 16 ]. Since journals and readers prioritize cutting-edge studies with positive results over inconclusive or negative results, researchers are reluctant to invest time and money in a manuscript that is unlikely to be accepted in a high-impact journal.

In addition to the option of publishing as preprint, other alternative publication formats have recently been introduced to facilitate the publication of research results that are hard to publish in traditional peer-reviewed journals. These include micro publications, data repositories, data journals, publication platforms, and journals that focus on negative or inconclusive results. The tool fiddle can support scientists in choosing the right publication format [ 95 , 96 ].

Open access publication

Publishing open access is one of the most established open science strategies. In contrast to the FAIR data principle, the term open access publication refers usually to the publication of a manuscript on a platform that is accessible free of charge—in translational biomedical research, this is mostly in the form of a scientific journal article. Originally, publications accessible free of charge were the answer to the paywalls established by renowned publishing houses, which led to social inequalities within and outside the research system. In translational biomedical research, the ethical aspect of urgently needed transparency is another argument in favor of open access publication, as these studies will not only be findable, but also internationally readable.

There are different ways of open access publishing; the 2 main routes are gold open access and green open access. Numerous journals offer now gold open access. It refers to the immediate and fully accessible publication of an article. The Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) provides a complete and updated list for high-quality, open access, and peer-reviewed journals [ 97 ]. Charité–Universitätsmedizin Berlin offers a specific tool for biomedical open access journals that supports animal researchers to choose an appropriate journal [ 49 ]. In addition, the Sherpa Romeo platform is a straightforward way to identify publisher open access policies on a journal-by-journal basis, including information on preprints, but also on licensing of articles [ 51 ]. Hybrid open access refers to openly accessible articles in otherwise paywalled journals. By contrast, green open access refers to the publication of a manuscript or article in a repository that is mostly operated by institutions and/or universities. The publication can be exclusively on the repository or in combination with a publisher. In the quality-assured, global Directory of Open Access Repositories (openDOAR), scientists can find thousands of indexed open access repositories [ 49 ]. The publisher often sets an embargo during which the authors cannot make the publication available in the repository, which can restrict the combined model. It is worth mentioning that gold open access is usually more expensive for the authors, as they have to pay an article processing charge. However, the article’s outreach is usually much higher than the outreach of an article in a repository or available exclusively as subscription content [ 98 ]. Diamond open access refers to publications and publication platforms that can be read free of charge by anyone interested and for which no costs are incurred by the authors either. It is the simplest and fairest form of open access for all parties involved, as no one is prevented from participating in scientific discourse by payment barriers. For now, it is not as widespread as the other forms because publishers have to find alternative sources of revenue to cover their costs.

As social media and the researcher’s individual public outreach are becoming increasingly important, it should be remembered that the accessibility of a publication should not be confused with the licensing under which the publication is made available. In order to be able to share and reuse one’s own work in the future, we recommend looking for journals that allow publications under the Creative Commons licenses CC BY or CC BY-NC. This also allows the immediate combination of gold and green open access.

Creative commons licenses

Attributing Creative Commons (CC) licenses to scientific content can make research broadly available and clearly specifies the terms and conditions under which people can reuse and redistribute the intellectual property, namely publications and data, while giving the credit to whom it deserves [ 49 ]. As the laws on copyright vary from country to country and law texts are difficult to understand for outsiders, the CC licenses are designed to be easily understandable and are available in 41 languages. This way, users can easily avoid accidental misuse. The CC initiative developed a tool that enables researchers to find the license that best fits their interests [ 49 ]. Since the licenses are based on a modular concept ranging from relatively unrestricted licenses (CC BY, free to use, credit must be given) to more restricted licenses (CC BY-NC-ND, only free to share for non-commercial purposes, credit must be given), one can find an appropriate license even for the most sensitive content. Publishing under an open CC license will not only make the publication easy to access but can also help to increase its reach. It can stimulate other researchers and the interested public to share this article within their network and to make the best future use of it. Bear in mind that datasets published independently from an article may receive a different CC license. In terms of intellectual property, data are not protected in the same way as articles, which is why the CC initiative in the United Kingdom recommends publishing them under a CC0 (“no rights reserved”) license or the Public Domain Mark. This gives everybody the right to use the data freely. In an animal ethics sense, this is especially important in order to get the most out of data derived from animal experiments.

Data and code repositories

Sharing research data is essential to ensure reproducibility and to facilitate scientific progress. This is particularly true in animal research and the scientific community increasingly recognizes the value of sharing research data. However, even though there is increasing support for the sharing of data, researchers still perceive barriers when it comes to doing so in practice [ 99 – 101 ]. Many universities and research institutions have established research data repositories that provide continuous access to datasets in a trusted environment. Many of these data repositories are tied to specific research areas, geographic regions, or scientific institutions. Due to the growing number and overall heterogeneity of these repositories, it can be difficult for researchers, funding agencies, publishers, and academic institutions to identify appropriate repositories for storing and searching research data.

Recently, several web-based tools have been developed to help in the selection of a suitable repository. One example is Re3data, a global registry of research data repositories that includes repositories from various scientific disciplines. The extensive database can be searched by country, content (e.g., raw data, source code), and scientific discipline [ 49 ]. A similar tool to help find a data archive specific to the field is FAIRsharing, based at Oxford University [ 102 ]. If there is no appropriate subject-specific data repository or one seems unsuitable for the data, there are general data repositories, such as Open Science Framework, figshare, Dryad, or Zenodo. To ensure that data stored in a repository can be found, a DOI is assigned to the data. Choosing the right license for the deposited code and data ensures that authors get credit for their work.

Publication and connection of all outcomes

If scientists have used all available open science tools during the research process, then publishing and linking all outcomes represents the well-deserved harvest ( Fig 2 ). At the end of a research process, researchers will not just have 1 publication in a journal. Instead, they might have a preregistration, a preprint, a publication in a journal, a dataset, and a protocol. Connecting these outcomes in a way that enables other scientists to better assess the results that link these publications will be key. There are many examples of good open science practices in laboratory animal science, but we want to highlight one of them to show how this could be achieved. Blenkuš and colleagues investigated how mild stress-induced hyperthermia can be assessed non-invasively by thermography in mice [ 103 ]. The study was preregistered with animalstudyregistry.org , which is referred to in their publication [ 104 ]. A deviation from the originally preregistered hypothesis was explained in the manuscript and the supplementary material was uploaded to figshare [ 105 ].

Application of open science practices can increase the reproducibility and visibility of a research project at the same time. By publishing different research outputs with more detailed information than can be included in a journal article, researchers enable peers to replicate their work. Reporting according to guidelines and using transparent visualization will further improve this reproducibility. The more research products that are generated, the more credit can be attributed. By communicating on social media or additionally publishing slides from delivered talks or posters, more attention can be raised. Additionally, publishing open access and making the work machine-findable makes it accessible to an even broader number of peers.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001810.g002

It might also be helpful to provide all resources from a project in a single repository such as Open Science Framework, which also implements other, different tools that might have been used, like GitHub or protocols.io.

Communicating your research

Once all outcomes of the project are shared, it is time to address the targeted peers. Social media is an important instrument to connect research communities [ 106 ]. In particular, Twitter is an effective way to communicate research findings or related events to peers [ 107 ]. In addition, specialized platforms like ResearchGate can support the exchange of practical experiences ( Table 1 ). When all resources related to a project are kept in one place, sharing this link is a straightforward way to reach out to fellow scientists.

With the increasing number of publications, science communication has become more important in recent years. Transparent science that communicates openly with the public contributes to strengthening society’s trust in research.

Conclusions

Plenty of open science tools are already available and the number of tools is constantly growing. Translational biomedical researchers should seize this opportunity, as it could contribute to a significant improvement in the transparency of research and fulfil their ethical responsibility to maximize the impact of knowledge gained from animal experiments. Over and above this, open science practices also bear important direct benefits for the scientists themselves. Indeed, the implementation of these tools can increase the visibility of research and becomes increasingly important when applying for grants or in recruitment decisions. Already, more and more journals and funders require activities such as data sharing. Several institutions have established open science practices as evaluation criteria alongside publication lists, impact factor, and h-index for panels deciding on hiring or tenure [ 108 ]. For new adopters, it is not necessary to apply all available practices at once. Implementing single tools can be a safe approach to slowly improve the outreach and reproducibility of one’s own research. The more open science products that are generated, the more reproducible the work becomes, but also the more the visibility of a study increases ( Fig 2 ).

As other research fields, such as social sciences, are already a step ahead in the implementation of open science practices, translational biomedicine can profit from their experiences [ 109 ]. We should thus keep in mind that open science comes with some risks that should be minimized early on. Indeed, the more open science practices become incentivized, the more researchers could be tempted to get a transparency quality label that might not be justified. When a study is based on a bad hypothesis or poor statistical planning, this cannot be fixed by preregistration, as prediction alone is not sufficient to validate an interpretation [ 110 ]. Furthermore, a boom of data sharing could disconnect data collectors and analysts, bearing the risk that researchers performing the analysis lack understanding of the data. The publication of datasets could also promote a “parasitic” use of a researcher’s data and lead to scooping of outcomes [ 111 ]. Stakeholders could counteract such a risk by promoting collaboration instead of competition.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen an explosion of preprint publications. This unseen acceleration of science might be the adequate response to a pandemic; however, the speeding up science in combination with the “publish or perish” culture could come at the expense of the quality of the publication. Nevertheless, a meta-analysis comparing the quality of reporting between preprints and peer-reviewed articles showed that the quality of reporting in preprints in the life sciences is at most slightly lower on average compared to peer-reviewed articles [ 112 ]. Additionally, preprints and social media have shown during this pandemic that a premature and overconfident communication of research results can be overinterpreted by journalists and raise unfounded hopes or fears in patients and relatives [ 113 ]. By being honest and open about the scope and limitations of the study and choosing communication channels carefully, researchers can avoid misinterpretation. It should be noted, however, that by releasing all methodological details and data in research fields such as viral engineering, where a dual use cannot be excluded, open science could increase biosecurity risk. Implementing access-controlled repositories, application programming interfaces, and a biosecurity risk assessment in the planning phase (i.e., by preregistration) could mitigate this threat [ 114 ].

Publishing in open access journals often involves higher publication costs, which makes it more difficult for institutes and universities from low-income countries to publish there [ 115 ]. Equity has been identified as a key aim of open science [ 116 ]. It is vital, therefore, that existing structural inequities in the scientific system are not unintentionally reinforced by open science practices. Early career researchers have been the main drivers of the open science movement in other fields even though they are often in vulnerable positions due to short contracts and hierarchical and strongly networked research environments. Supporting these early career researchers in adopting open science tools could significantly advance this change in research culture [ 117 ]. However, early career researchers can already benefit by publishing registered reports or preprints that can provide a publication much faster than conventional journal publications. Communication in social media can help them establish a network enabling new collaborations or follow-up positions.

Even though open science comes with some risks, the benefits easily overweigh these caveats. If a change towards more transparency is accompanied by the implementation of open science in the teaching curricula of the universities, most of the risks can be minimized [ 118 ]. Interestingly, we have observed that open science tools and infrastructure that are specific to animal research seem to mostly come from Europe. This may be because of strict regulations within Europe for animal experiments or because of a strong research focus in laboratory animal science along with targeted research funding in this region. Whatever the reason might be, it demonstrates the important role of research policy in accelerating the development towards 3Rs and open science.

Overall, it seems inevitable that open science will eventually prevail in translational biomedical research. Scientists should not wait for the slow-moving incentive framework to change their research habits, but should take pioneering roles in adopting open science tools and working towards more collaboration, transparency, and reproducibility.

Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the valuable input and comments from Sebastian Dunst, Daniel Butzke, and Nils Körber that have improved the content of this work.

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Role of animal models in biomedical research: a review

P. mukherjee.

1 Department of Veterinary Clinical Complex, West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences, Mohanpur, Nadia, India

2 Department of Veterinary Surgery and Radiology, West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences, Kolkata, India

S. K. Nandi

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The animal model deals with the species other than the human, as it can imitate the disease progression, its’ diagnosis as well as a treatment similar to human. Discovery of a drug and/or component, equipment, their toxicological studies, dose, side effects are in vivo studied for future use in humans considering its’ ethical issues. Here lies the importance of the animal model for its enormous use in biomedical research. Animal models have many facets that mimic various disease conditions in humans like systemic autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease, cardiovascular diseases, Atherosclerosis, diabetes, etc., and many more. Besides, the model has tremendous importance in drug development, development of medical devices, tissue engineering, wound healing, and bone and cartilage regeneration studies, as a model in vascular surgeries as well as the model for vertebral disc regeneration surgery. Though, all the models have some advantages as well as challenges, but, present review has emphasized the importance of various small and large animal models in pharmaceutical drug development, transgenic animal models, models for medical device developments, studies for various human diseases, bone and cartilage regeneration model, diabetic and burn wound model as well as surgical models like vascular surgeries and surgeries for intervertebral disc degeneration considering all the ethical issues of that specific animal model. Despite, the process of using the animal model has facilitated researchers to carry out the researches that would have been impossible to accomplish in human considering the ethical prohibitions.

The animals used in various studies and investigations are related to the evolution of human history. Though there are many shreds of evidence that Aristotle in ancient Greece successfully used animals in understanding the human body, the main breakthrough in animal models happened in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries with the scientists like Jean Baptiste Van Helmont, Francesco Redi, John Needham, Lazzaro Spallanzani, Lavoisier and Pasteur who studied the origin of life using animal models [ 1 ]. At the same time, human physiology, anatomy, pathology as well as pharmacology were also studied using animal models. With the remarkable advancements in drug development, biomedicine and pre-clinical trials, the importance of animal models has increased many folds in the last decades, as the therapeutic outcome and drug safety are the foremost important criteria for a drug and medical device considered to be used in the human model [ 2 ]. The scientific apply of animal models in the arena of biological research and drug development is an age-old practice because of the notable resemblance in physiology and anatomy between humans and animals, especially mammals [ 3 ]. One must consider that the physiological processes of humans, as well as mammals, are complex in terms of circulatory factors, hormones, cellular structures, and tissue systems. Hence, investigation of various aspects such as molecular structures, cellular and organ functions in physiological and pathological conditions must be taken into consideration.

The process of selection of an animal model for biomedical research is a very intricate part, as all models are not acceptable due to various limitations. Many factors should be taken into consideration during the selection of an ideal animal model for biomedical trials. The most important criteria are the proper selection of models in terms of resemblance between animal species and humans in terms of physiological and/or pathophysiological aspects. Detailed evaluation during the application of certain drugs/molecules/devices and their capacity to reproduce the disease or pathology at the same level as that of humans. Availability and the size of animal species under consideration. Long life duration of the animal species under study. A Large animal population in a model facilitates the availability of multiple sub-species.

Many animal species such as  Drosophila  (insects),  Danio rerio , or zebrafish (fish),  Caenorhabditis elegans  (nematodes),  Xenopus  (frogs), and mammals such as mice, rabbits, rats, cats, dogs, pigs, and monkeys have been accepted worldwide for their phylogenetic resemblance to humans [ 4 ].

Choice of an appropriate animal model is most of the time a tedious job and sometimes depends on assumptions and convenience of the study and researchers without considering whether the model will be appropriate or not. Irrational selection of an inappropriate animal model for scientific investigations will yield incorrect findings, as well as fetch misusage of resources and lives. Moreover, it results in erroneous, duplicative, and inappropriate experiments [ 5 ]. To minimize these problems, recently researchers have advanced their researches to produce animal models that are very specific to the research under consideration. They produced custom-made transgenic animal models by incorporating genetic information directly into the embryo either by injecting foreign DNA or through retroviral vectors [ 6 ]. Through the incorporation of human cells into the recipient animals, researchers can study the effects of pathogens similar to the way in the human body [ 7 ]. Proper selection of animal models is mainly related to the nature of the drug or medical devices under study. In many instances, a single animal model is not able to signify a human disease alone, in that case, the combination of several models can potentially signify the procedure [ 8 ].

The significance and challenges of animals in biomedical research

There has always been a debate among the researchers about the significance of animal models, as many experiments yield promising results, whereas, others couldn’t produce desired outcomes, so, that model could be translated to humans too. Owing to their close phylogenetic closeness to humans, non-human primates are proved to be the most potential candidate. They have genetic, biochemical, and psychological activities similar to humans. In this context, the necessity of non-human primates continues to grow in several areas of research of human diseases viz. AIDS, Parkinson’s disease, hepatitis, dentistry, orthopaedic surgical techniques, cardiovascular surgeries, psychological disorders, toxicological studies, drug development, toxicological studies as well as vaccine development [ 4 ]. The discovery of vaccines and diagnostic modalities with the animal model does not only benefit humans but also enhances the lifespan of animals and prevents many zoonotic diseases, with the production of many vaccines and drugs like rabies, tetanus, parvo virus, feline leukemia, etc (Table ​ (Table1 1 ).

Significance and challenges of different animal models

Ethical matters on the use of animals

Animal research adheres to a few dimensions like government legislation, public opinion, moral stand, and search for appropriate alternatives for the research. Mahatma Gandhi opined that to judge the greatness and moral progress of a nation, one should judge the way its animals are being treated. Government legislation restricts the researchers and institutes from likely injury, pain, or suffering that may arise during animal research [ 33 ]. On the contrary, many modern countries ruled that before human administration, vaccine testing, lethal dose testing should be done on animals [ 34 ]. Social acceptance has also an influential role in animal experiments as it utilizes public money [ 33 ]. In their moral view, many people think that dog has more moral impact than pig, rat, fishes, mouse, etc.

Ethical issues on animal experimentation started in 1959, where the emphasis has been given on principles of 3Rs, reduction, refinement, and replacement of animal use [ 35 ]. According to this principle, minimum necessary numbers of animals are to be used for scientific experiments i.e. reduction. Pain or distress of the animals during experiments has to be minimized, i.e. refinement. Wherever applicable replacements of the animals are to be done with other non-animal alternatives, i.e. replacement. Though these principles are considered as the cornerstone of animal experimentations, but there are questions regarding the implementation of these regulations [ 36 ].

Laboratory (small) and large animal models for human diseases

The importance of rat and mouse models has proved their outstanding importance in biomedical research. Besides, other mammalian and non-mammalian small domestic animals like the guinea pig, hamster, rabbit, ferrets, birds, amphibians, fishes, flies, worms have equal importance in terms of anatomical and physiological resemblance with humans. Large animal models also proved their uniqueness due to specific anatomical and physiological characteristics pertinent to those specific researches (Table ​ (Table2 2 ).

Biomedical significances and limitations of small animal models

Transgenic animal models in biomedical research

The gene rule and role in the biological system of human diseases has improved many folds with the introduction of the transgenic animal model in biomedical research within the last three decades. The early example of most unique biological research started, when structural gene coding for the human growth hormone (GH) was initiated into mice after fusion with the regulatory region of mouse metallothionein-I gene, as a result, transgenic mouse produced and showed excess GH production [ 157 ].

Linking of the genotype with disease phenotype has been expedited with the genome editing with the introduction of the CRISPR–Cas9 system by which disease-causing mutations are done in animal models [ 158 ]. Moreover, the production of transgenic animals has been radically changed by the introduction of the CRISPR–Cas9 system. Through the successful use of this model accurate human disease models in animals have been produced and possible therapies have been potentiated. Recapitulation of various disease-causing single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in animal models is achieved by the introduction of gRNA with the combination of Cas9 and donor template DNA [ 159 ], viz. mouse model has enormous importance in carrying human genetic traits, developmental similarities as well as disease translation [ 158 , 160 – 162 ]. Zhang and Sharp labs at MIT/Broad Institute used CRISPR–Cas9 through AAV and lentivirus [ 163 ] both in vivo and ex vivo in neurons as well as endothelial cells of mice for the production of lung cancer model in mice where lung causing genes namely Kras, Tp53, and Lkb1 were mutated. On the other hand, an MIT-Harvard team [ 164 ] disrupted the tumor suppressor genes Pten and Tp53, and consequently liver cancer was produced in mice.

Animal models in pharmaceutical drug development

In recent advancements, animal models are the most practical tools for pre-clinical drug screening before application into clinical trials. Animal models are considered as most important in vivo models in terms of basic pharmacokinetic parameters like drug efficiency, safety, toxicological studies, as these pre-clinical data are required before translating into humans. Toxicological tests are performed on a large number of animals like general toxicity, mutagenicity, carcinogenicity, and teratogenicity and to evaluate whether the drugs are irritant to eyes and skin. In most instances, both in vitro and in vivo models are corroborated before proceeding to medical trials. In vivo models are mostly conducted in mice, rats, and rabbits [ 2 ]. Certain stages are involved in pre-clinical trials with animal models: firstly, if the trial drug shows desirable efficacy then only further studies are carried out; secondly, if a drug in pre-clinical trials on animals proved to be safe, then it is administered in small human volunteer groups, at the same time, the animal trial will go on to evaluate the effect of the drug when administered for an extended period [ 8 , 165 ]. Mostly, rodents are used for these trials as they have similar biological properties to humans and are easy to handle and rear in laboratories. In new regulations, it is mandatory to carry on the trials on non-rodents such as rabbits, dogs, cats, or primates simultaneously with rodents [ 166 ].

Animal models in orthopedic research

There are many conditions involving bone pathologies such as osteomyelitis, osteosarcoma, osteoporosis, etc. Being a complex organ, the treatment of bone needs special care and extensive researches that involves specialized techniques as well as specific animal models for the studies of specific diseases. Herein, the animal models emphasize mostly related to fracture healing (critical size defect), osteoporosis, osteomyelitis, and osteosarcoma (Table ​ (Table3 3 ).

Different animal models in orthopaedic research

Animal models in diabetic and burn wound healing

Type 2 diabetes and associated foot ulcer have turned into an epidemic worldwide in recent years causing severe socio-economic trouble to the patients as well as the health care system of the nation as a whole [ 208 ]. Various researches depicted that chance of developing an ulcer in diabetic patients varies between 15–25% [ 209 , 210 ] and the chance of recurrence is about 20–58% among the patients within a year after recovery [ 211 ]. Hence, many researchers studied different materials or drugs to treat diabetic wounds. Similarly, burn wounds occur due to exposure to flames, hot surfaces, liquids, chemicals, or even cold exposure [ 212 ]. Though with the recent modalities like skin grafting prognosis has improved however, the mortality rate is high [ 213 – 215 ].

Diabetic wound rat model

For developing this model, clinically healthy male Wistar rats (150 ~ 250 g body weight) are used. To induce hyperglycemia, injection nicotinamide (NAD)@ 150 mg/kg BW intraperitoneally, after 15 min injection Streptozotocin (STZ) @ 65 mg/kg BW intraperitoneally [ 216 ] are to be injected. The same procedure has to be repeated after 24 h. Blood is to be collected from the tail after 72 h to check hyperglycemia. Rats having high blood glucose levels (≥ 10 mmol/L) are considered to be diabetic [ 217 ]. For wound creation, rats are to be anesthetized with a combination of xylazine @10 mg/kg (intramuscular injection) and ketamine @90 mg/kg (intramuscular injection) [ 218 ]. After marking the dorsal back area with methylene blue, the site is to be prepared aseptically after shaving [ 219 ]. Full-thickness wound creation is to be done with a sterile 6 mm biopsy punch measuring 6 mm diameter and 2 mm depth and left open [ 218 ] (Fig.  1 c).

a . Bone defect model and implantation of implant b . Vascular graft mode c . Diabetic wound model d . Osteomyelitis model development e . Creation of burn wound model f . Cartilage graft model—All in rabbit

Burn wound models

Because of the severity and types of cause, the management of burn injuries poses a significant challenge to plastic surgeons in humans. In general, primary and secondary burn wounds heal by the primary healing process, but, third-degree burn injuries with the destruction of all the skin layers are resistant to the normal healing process and necessitate the added surgical procedures, such as skin grafting, and the relevance of advanced wound dressing [ 220 ]. Several researchers used the albino Winstar male rats ( Rattus norvegicus ) model weighing 250 ± 50 g for the study of burn wounds. Anesthesia was achieved with intramuscular administration of atropine sulfate (0.04 mg/kg BW) and after 10 min a combination of 10% ketamine (90 mg/kg) and 2% xylazine (10 mg/kg) intramuscularly produced adequate anesthesia [ 221 ]. After aseptic preparation of the dorsal back area, thermal injury has to be made with a 10 mm aluminium rod previously heated with 100 °C boiling water. The aluminium rod has to be kept in situ for 15 s. Immediately after the procedure analgesic is to be provided and to be continued for at least 3 days [ 222 – 224 ]. A hot air blower has been used to produce a 6% third-degree burn injury in a mouse model [ 225 ]. In pig, a partial-thickness burn model in the skin was produced by placing a glass bottle having heated water at 92 °C for 14 s [ 226 ] In other studies, a homemade heating device was placed over the skin for 35 s to create burn wound [ 227 ]. In rabbits, it was demonstrated to use a dry-heated brass rod for 10 and 20 s at 90 °C to create a deep partial-thickness burn wound in the ear [ 228 ]. In mice, a full-thickness burn was created under 3–5% isoflurane anesthesia and intraperitoneal caprofen 5 mg/kg as analgesia. Here, a 4 cm 2 brass rod attached to a temperature probe was first heated to 260 °C and then cool to 230 °C and finally placed on the dorsum skin for 9 s [ 229 ] (Fig.  1 e).

Animal models in cartilage repair

Animal models have enormous importance in the study of cartilage repair. Though in vitro models have been reported, it could not replace the necessity of using animal models prior to clinical implementation [ 230 – 236 ] (Table ​ (Table4 4 ).

Different animal models for cartilage rejuvenation or repair

Animal models in vascular grafting

With the increase of cardiovascular complications, there is a need for surgical intervention using vascular grafts. Vascular grafting and cardiac valve repair have become important issues to the clinicians for the replacement of damaged vessels [ 249 , 250 ], hence there is an increased demand for tissue-engineered blood vessel substitute [ 250 , 251 ]. The main prosthetic options are synthetic grafts such as polytetrafluoroethylene, polyethylene terephthalate, and polyurethane [ 252 ], and autologous conduits. Although these types of synthetic grafts provide reasonable outcomes in large-diameter vascular applications, long-term patency is questionable as compared to autologous conduits in small-diameter (< 6 mm) applications due to their inclination to various complications [ 253 ]. Despite the superior outcome of autologous grafts, it has some disadvantages such as limited availability and prior use. Moreover, the determination of a suitable animal model needs considerations of various factors. The factors for the selection of animal species depend on diameter and length of conduits, period of implantation, anastomotic site, price, accessibility, reaction to anesthesia and surgery, and flow of blood at sites of graft implantation. Animal applications of these tissue-engineered vessels are, therefore, an utmost necessity as pre-clinical studies before use in humans (Fig.  1 b, Table ​ Table5 5 ).

In vivo animal studies of different vascular grafts

Animal models in disc degeneration

Intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD) and herniation manifested as lower back pain cause a massive socio-economic burden to the patient and society as a whole [ 264 – 267 ]. But there is a lack of treatment modalities to cure mildly to moderate degeneration as well as complications associated with surgical interventions associated with the advanced stage; hence, researchers are enormously trying to reinforce regenerative strategies and to lower the suffering by controlling the pain with the injection of stem cells, growth factors hydrogels for replacement of the disc [ 268 ]. Diverse animal models have been reported as a pre-clinical trial to translate the procedure in humans (Table ​ (Table6 6 ).

Different animal models for the study of IVDD

Conclusions

The importance of animal models is unquestionable in terms of in vivo study for the implementation of any biomedical research to humans. It serves not only the human race but also well being of veterinary patients. Animal models have not only important roles in drug development, toxicity studies, pharmacokinetic studies of a drug, but also the pre-clinical study of medical and tissue engineering devices that are intended to be used in humans. Laboratory animal models are more cost-effective and agreeable to high throughput testing as compared to large animal models. Yet, to obtain preclinical data and to ascertain the clinical potential of vascular graft as well as orthopedic bone plates and implants, large animal models that mimic human anatomy and physiology are to be developed. Whatever may be the modes of using animal models for biomedical researches, it should abide by the principles of 3Rs, i.e., reduction, refinement, and replacement of animals.

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the kind support of Vice-Chancellor, West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences, Kolkata, India.

Abbreviations

Author contributions

SKN: Conceptualization, Methodology, Supervision and final correction of draft. PM and SR: Data curation, Writing-Original draft preparation. DG: Editing . All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.

There was no funding support for this study.

Availability of data and materials

Declarations.

The authors declare that there is no competing of interest in this manuscript.

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Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

P. Mukherjee and S. Roy equally contributed and joint first author

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What is Animal Science: Exploring the Field of Animal Studies

Exploring the field of animal science.

Animal science is a multifaceted field that encompasses the study of animal biology and management, aiming to improve the lives of both animals and humans. Pursuing an animal science degree provides a robust foundation in crucial areas such as animal nutrition, reproduction, genetics, and physiology. It equips students with the knowledge necessary to embark on a diverse range of animal-centered professions or to continue their education in veterinary medicine or graduate studies.

Choosing animal science as an undergraduate major at UNH COLSA involves immersive, hands-on learning experiences beyond the traditional classroom setting. You will have the opportunity to engage directly with animals, understand their behavior and care, and apply theoretical knowledge in practical settings. This dynamic approach to learning emphasizes the significance of field experience in preparing for future careers in the industry.

By obtaining a degree in animal science, you open doors to a variety of career paths. Opportunities range from animal care and production, business management within the animal sector, to roles in the pharmaceutical and animal feed industries. Additionally, graduates can contribute to advocacy, policy consulting, government agencies such as the USDA, cooperative extension services, food inspection and safety, and veterinary medicine, ensuring that you are equipped to make significant contributions to the animal science field and society's relationship with animals.

Foundations of Animal Science

In the field of animal science, understanding the biological and management aspects of animals is crucial. This knowledge spans genetics, nutrition, and the overall well-being of domestic and agricultural animals.

Biology and Genetics

Biology underpins the study of animal science, providing critical insights into the functioning and development of animals. Through courses like Introduction to Animal Science and Genetics of Animals , students acquire an in-depth understanding of molecular biology, cell biology, and genetics, which are vital in improving breeding programs and preserving genetic diversity in animal populations. Knowledge in growth biology and microbiology also allow for advancements in animal health and disease management.

Nutrition and Food Sciences

Nutrition plays a pivotal role in the science of animals, focusing on the dietary needs and the impact of various nutrients on animal health and productivity. Courses such as  Principles of Animal Nutrition explore topics like the digestion, absorption, and metabolism of nutrients. Understanding the chemistry behind animal feed helps develop food products that enhance the growth and productive capacity of livestock, which in turn supports the sustainability of food systems.

Incorporating knowledge from these vital areas equips you for diverse fields such as animal health , production , and policy consulting . The comprehensive curriculum at educational institutions such as UNH prepares you to tackle real-world challenges in animal science.

Animal Health and Welfare

In the realm of animal science, maintaining the health and welfare of animals is a multifaceted goal that involves careful management of disease, understanding animal behavior, and ensuring their well-being through various measures.

Disease Control and Prevention

Disease control is essential in safeguarding animal health. To minimize the spread of illness, health maintenance protocols and environmental regulation play critical roles. Your proactive steps in disease control might include vaccination programs, quarantine procedures for new or sick animals, and regular health screenings. It's important to establish a clean and safe environment with appropriate shelter, nutrition, and water sources, as these factors significantly impact disease prevention.

Behavior and Welfare

The welfare of animals is intricately linked to their behavior, which signals their overall health and well-being. By observing and understanding behavioral cues, you can ensure that animals are not in distress. Providing social interaction, enrichment activities, and adequate space allows animals to exhibit natural behaviors, thereby promoting better welfare. Be aware of the complexity of animals' emotional and physical needs, as animal care and welfare are critical components of ethical and scientifically sound animal science practices.

By integrating these practices, you contribute to a higher standard of animal welfare and health, reflecting a deep understanding of the critical balance between natural behaviors and managed care.

Animal Husbandry and Management

Animal Husbandry and Management are critical for optimizing the health and productivity of farm animals. This involves strategies and methods that enhance breeding and effective farm operations.

Breeding and Reproduction

In animal breeding, genetic principles are applied to select animals that will parent the next generation. Your goal for effective breeding is to improve traits in livestock such as milk production; this can be accomplished through techniques like artificial insemination and embryo transfer. Reproduction strategies must consider an animal's genetics, health, and environment to successfully increase herd or flock numbers. Understanding diseases that affect domestic animals, including modes of transmission and protection offered by vaccines, is fundamental.

Livestock and Farm Management

Livestock management requires comprehensively addressing the care of farm animals. You are responsible for the nutrition, shelter, health, and overall wellbeing of the animals on your farm. Farm management involves creating a balance between the business aspects and the biological processes of animal agriculture. Implement record-keeping practices, such as tracking animal health and imports per regulations , to ensure effective oversight. Moreover, adhering to relevant agricultural policies helps maintain standards and protect animal welfare.

Industry Applications and Research

In the diverse field of animal science, industry applications and research play a crucial role. Your understanding of these areas ensures that animal products are processed safely and effectively, and that advancements in biotechnology and animal health continue to evolve.

Animal Products Processing

In the Department of Animal Science, you'll find that processing animal products not only involves transforming raw materials into food but also encompasses stringent quality control measures. For example, meat science experts focus on issues such as shelf-life extension, taste enhancement, and nutritional value improvement. Here's a brief outline:

• Safety Testing : Protocols to ensure products are free of contaminants.
• Packaging Innovations : Techniques to preserve freshness and extend shelf life.
• Efficiency Improvements : Streamlining processing methods to boost production.

Research and Development

Research and development within the field of animal science are multifaceted. Research programs at universities often collaborate with pharmaceutical companies to pioneer new drugs and vaccines.

• Biotechnology : Utilization of genetic engineering to advance animal health and productivity.
• Diagnostics : Development of new testing methods for early disease detection.

By engaging with these sectors, you interact with the cutting-edge of animal science, contributing to the field's growth and ensuring the wellbeing of animals and humans alike.

Animal Science in Society

Animal science plays a crucial role in modern society by advancing our understanding of animal biology and the management of livestock and pets. This knowledge supports various industries and contributes to advancements in fields like veterinary medicine and biotechnology.

Education and Careers

Pursuing a degree in animal science from UNH COLSA equips you with an extensive understanding of animal health, nutrition, genetics, and management. Programs like the Bachelor of Science in Animal Science teach you about domestic and wild animal management, preparing you for a diverse range of careers in the sector. As an animal scientist, you could find employment in numerous settings such as zoos, research facilities, agricultural companies, or in roles involving animal behavior studies. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics provides details on employment and wage estimates for animal scientists.

• Zoo and Aquarium Management : You could be involved in the care and conservation of wildlife species.
• Biotechnology Firms : Engage in research and development related to animal health products.
• Animal Nutrition Companies : Focus on formulating diets for various animal species.

Regulation and Ethics

Regulatory Bodies : In the realm of animal science, it’s essential to comply with guidelines and policies set by authorities such as the CDC or the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). They ensure that activities involving animals meet the required ethical and safety standards.

• Certifications : Bodies like the American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists (ARPAS) provide certifications that affirm your expertise and adherence to ethical practices.
• Ethical Considerations : As an animal scientist, you're expected to prioritize animal welfare, often informed by the latest research in animal behavior and welfare science.

Legislation and Welfare : Your work must align with animal welfare legislation, which is pivotal to ensuring that animals are treated humanely, whether it’s in a laboratory setting or on a farm. Veterinary medicine professionals play a crucial role in advocating for and upholding these welfare standards.

Explore COLSA at UNH

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Ethical care for research animals

FACTS and MYTHS

You've heard the myths about animals and research science. We'd like to share some of the facts.

Myth: cats, dogs, and primates are the animals most used in research., fact: approximately 95% of the total number of animals needed for medical and scientific inquiry in the u.s. are rodents..

Most of the animals needed for medical and scientific inquiry in the U.S. are rodents (for example, rats and mice), and they are specifically bred for this purpose.

Dogs, cats, and nonhuman primates together account for less than 1% of all animals necessary for medical research. A wide variety of other species make up the remaining 4%, from eels, to armadillos, to zebrafish, to frogs.

Myth: Research animals are abused and mistreated.

Fact: good science and good animal care are inseparable..

If animals are not well treated, the science and knowledge from their studies will not be trustworthy and cannot be replicated, both important hallmarks of the scientific method.  

Our researchers are strong supporters of animal welfare, and view their work with animals as a privilege. They are legally, and morally, obligated to ensure the health and well-being of all animals in their care in strict adherence to federal and state regulatory guidelines and humane principles, and to ensure that our animals are involved only in productive and meaningful studies.

Myth: Animal research is scientific fraud, since animals and humans are different.

Fact: there are many similarities between humans and animals..

For example, chimpanzees share more that 99% of DNA with humans, and mice share more than 98%!  Animals are susceptible to many of the same health problems as humans – cancer, diabetes, and heart disease, to name a few.

Research with animal species has provided much of what we know about disease progression, care, treatment, and cure. For example, mice have significantly contributed to the advances in the treatment and survival of breast cancer; zebrafish are excellent models for the study of hemophilia; and cats have helped us know more about disorders such as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), sleep apnea, and epilepsy.

Myth: Animal research is no longer necessary because there are non-animal alternatives to animal experiments.

Fact: researchers are committed to the search for alternatives to animal use whenever possible, for ethical, humane, and economic reasons, and a wide-variety of alternative techniques are actively utilized..

Such alternatives include cell-culture techniques, animal or human serum (a derivative of blood), and computer modeling, among others. All together, these alternative research methodologies play an important and growing role in biomedical research. They cannot, however, reproduce the interactions of an intact, whole-living biological system provided by laboratory animals, nor can they reveal potential complications from a drug designed to treat one condition on other organs and systems.

Legally, animal use is a required part of drug development.  Current U.S. federal laws and regulations require proof of safety and effectiveness through testing in animal models before any human studies (clinical trials) are allowed to begin.  No new drug may be prescribed in the United States without successful completion of human clinical trials and approval by the FDA.  

With all the promise and information alternatives to animal-based research offers, it cannot yet fully replace whole-animal models in any comprehensive fashion.

Myth: Animal testing debates argue that animal experiments are needlessly duplicated.

Fact: researchers are committed to preventing any unnecessary duplication of experiments..

The rigorous scientific peer review of research proposals, extensive literature searches, and the study of previous experiments helps researchers prevent duplication.

In addition to the ethical imperative to avoid duplication, there are economic incentives as well. Animal research is expensive and avoiding duplicate experimentation is cost-effective as well as ethically sound. Competition for funding also ensures that redundant experiments are unlikely to be approved, that projects have been evaluated to determine whether animals are necessary, and that the absolute minimum number of animals is used.

Myth: Millions of stolen pets are sold for research.

Fact: animals used for research do not come from random animal dealers who steal dogs and cats for research..

In California, dogs and cats needed for medical research are obtained from specialty laboratory animal breeders, who are registered with the USDA. These specially bred animals are chosen for their genetic make-up, health condition, and breed, something that could not be achieved using animals from pounds or shelters, or from individuals with non-laboratory-bred animals. All dogs and cats must have paperwork that clearly demonstrates their point of origin, to ensure and prove that these animals have never been pets.

Animal Research species at Stanford. Click for larger view.

Good animal care = good science.

Mice share 98% of their DNA with humans!

Animal trials are federally mandated.

Alternative techniques are used whenever possible.

Stanford veterinarians caring for research animals.

Regulatory Oversight

Stanford researchers keep to the highest standards of animal care and oversight.

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The well-being of the animals in our care is of paramount importance at Stanford.

• Are animals treated ethically at Stanford? Learn more

Animal Care and Facilities

All research animals at Stanford live in environments that meet their specific, species-associated needs.

• Learn more about species-specific care

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Science News

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Here’s how an arthropod pulls off the world’s fastest backflip, more stories in animals.

In a first, these bats were found to have toes that glow

Hairs on the toes of Mexican free-tailed bats fluoresce under UV light, a new study reports. The function of the toe glow is unknown.

Remote seamounts in the southeast Pacific may be home to 20 new species

A recent expedition to the intersection of two undersea mountain chains has revealed a new seamount and a rich world of deep-sea biodiversity.

National Geographic’s ‘OceanXplorers’ dives into the ocean’s mysteries

National Geographic’s documentary series ‘OceanXplorers,’ produced by James Cameron, invites you aboard one of the most advanced research vessels in the world.

This spider makes its home in the burrows of extinct giant ground sloths

Caves made by extinct giant ground sloths make the perfect home for a newly discovered type of long-spinneret ground spider from Brazil.

This spider uses trapped fireflies to lure in more prey

Male fireflies trapped in the spider’s web flash femalelike lights, possibly luring in other flying males and allowing the arachnid to stock up on food.

This spiky fossil shows what early mollusks looked like

The fossil, plus 17 others from more than 500 million years ago, reveal that early mollusks were slug-like creatures with prickly armor.

Scientists want to send endangered species’ cells to the moon

Climate change is threatening Earth’s biodiversity banks. It might be time to build a backup on the moon.

Nasty-tasting cane toads teach crocodiles a lifesaving lesson

After tasting nausea-inducing toad butts, crocodiles in Australia learned to avoid the poisonous live version. Crocodile deaths dropped by 95 percent.

A risk-tolerant immune system may enable house sparrows’ wanderlust

Birds that are willing to eat seed spiked with chicken poop have higher expression levels of a gut immunity gene, a new study finds.

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What is Animal Science?

Animal Science is concerned with the science and business of producing domestic livestock species, including but not limited to beef cattle, dairy cattle, horses, poultry, sheep, and swine. An animal scientist applies principles of the biological, physical, and social sciences to the problems associated with livestock production and management. Animal Science is also concerned with foods of animal origin: meat, dairy foods, and eggs. The food industry is one of the largest and most important industries in the United States. In addition, animal science is concerned with aspects of companion animals, including their nutrition, care, and welfare.

Animal scientists must have formal training and appropriate experience to learn and apply the complex principles involved in animal production, care, and use. Knowledge of such basic subjects as animal behavior and management, genetics, microbiology, nutrition, physiology, reproduction, and meat science is essential to persons entering most animal sciences professions. However, a farm or animal-related background is not required.

Global forces are demanding more from the agriculture industry. A growing world population with changing patterns of diet requires more food. This food production must take place on a finite amount of land during climatic change. It must be integrated with the needs of people and the environment. The complex challenges of the next century demand agricultural professionals who can identify opportunities and devise innovative solutions. The broad knowledge base in animal science prepares students for rewarding careers.

Animal Science Careers

Students earning a B.S. degree with a major in animal science are qualified for a wide variety of challenging careers. In fact, there are over 500 different job classifications for animal science graduates. Graduates find employment in academic teaching and research, industrial research in the food and feed industries, in laboratory research programs with governmental and international agencies, private corporations, and in industrial or institutional management positions requiring a high level of scientific training. In government positions, graduates can help draft regulations governing the agriculture industry, or work directly in research. Other traditional employment can be found with feed manufacturers, animal breeding companies, meat packers, pharmaceutical companies, consulting firms, universities, or in primary production. An agricultural science degree is also the gateway to a multitude of possibilities in the growing agricultural biotechnology industry.

What Career Opportunities Are Available?

By majoring in animal sciences, you can prepare yourself for one or more of the many careers related to animal agriculture. Depending on the particular program of study you choose, rewarding career opportunities are available in business, industry, government, education, and research:

Allied animal industries such as feed and equipment manufacturers, artificial breeding associations, pharmaceutical firms, meat processors, and food distributors employ animal scientists in various technical, managerial, administrative, public relations, and sales positions.

Breeding and livestock marketing organizations employ animal scientists as field representatives, managers, consultants, market forecasters, and public relations specialists.

Extension educators with animal sciences training find professional teaching positions as state and area livestock specialists and county agricultural agents.

Food processors, meat packers, and related industries seek persons with meat science background for positions in management, product and process development, purchasing, quality assurance, technical and consumer services, advertising, and sales.

Formal training in the basic animal sciences provides essential background for professional careers in veterinary medicine.

Government agencies employ persons with undergraduate or advanced training in the animal sciences as administrative or technical specialists in livestock marketing, forecasting, environmental regulation, animal health, disease control, meats inspection, and public information.

Livestock breeders and feedlot operators seek persons with strong animal sciences and business training for positions in production management, animal nutrition, physiology, and behavior.

Researchers and laboratory technicians are employed by many government agencies and private firms, working in such specialized fields as animal breeding and reproduction, health maintenance and disease control, animal nutrition, computer modeling, animal housing, waste management, environmental quality, and processing, handling, and quality control with meat, milk, eggs, and other animal products.

Self-employed persons with animal sciences training develop professional careers in such diverse fields as farm and feedlot operation, management services, consulting, livestock marketing, animal breeding, and kennel or clinic operations.

State and national organizations such as the National Cattlemen's Association, National Pork Producers Council, the National Dairy Herd Improvement Association, and others employ animal scientists to promote, educate, and work in the public sector with consumers of animal products; other service organizations employing animal scientists in educational, communications, and public relations roles include banking, insurance, and real estate firms.

Universities, colleges, and other educational organizations employ persons with advanced animal sciences training as teachers, researchers, laboratory technicians, and extension specialists.

Vocational agriculture educators with animal sciences backgrounds find professional careers in secondary schools, area vocational centers, and community colleges.

Writers and communicators with animal sciences training are employed by the various animal industries in advertising, publications work, and public information activities.

Zoos, kennels, animal clinics, horse farms, animal preserves, and similar facilities offer many positions as animal caretakers, technicians, gamekeepers, and veterinary assistants.

Recent advances in genetic engineering, molecular biology, and other biotechnology areas relating to animal production, care, and use underline the significant changes in today's animal agriculture and its growing importance to society as a whole. As new career opportunities emerge, many trained animal scientists will be needed to assume these challenging roles.

Possible Job Titles

• Animal Health
• Product Sales
• Feed Sales/Management
• Livestock Equipment Sales/Mgt
• Livestock Procurement
• Field Representative
• A.I. Breeding Technician
• Livestock Feedlot Operator
• Research and Lab Technician
• Public Relations Specialist
• Market Forecaster Sales
• Technical Representative
• Teacher Researcher
• Extension Specialist
• Livestock Marketing Specialist
• Housing & Environmental Quality Specialist
• Livestock Insurance Representative
• Animal Scientist
• Food/Meat Product Development
• Quality Assurance
• Food Service Management
• Farm Management
• Dairy Equipment Specialist
• Stable Management
• Market Reporter
• Financial Analyst
• Financial Representative

Types of Employers

• Self employed
• Feed companies
• Animal health firms
• Livestock equipment companies
• Commercial feedlots Food/meat processing companies
• Universities
• Private research firms
• Breeding firms
• Marketing/commission firms
• Insurance companies
• Companion animal industry
• Stockyard companies
• Purebred breed associations
• Poultry processors
• Community colleges
• Riding stables
• Livestock publications
• Radio/TV stations
• Veterinary supplies
• Federal and State government
• Farm organizations
• Beef cattle
• Cow/calf operations
• Stocker or grower programs
• Milk production
• Farrowing operations
• Grower/finisher operations
• Farrow to finish
• Wheat pasture growing/finishing programs
• Broiler production
• Egg production
• Mare Breeding Farm
• Training facility Livestock feed
• Distribution Financial institution
• Lending agencies ​
• Breed organizations
• Livestock sales
• Market reporting
• Pharmaceuticals
• Agricultural chemicals
• Livestock supplies
• Livestock production enterprises
• Sales/marketing companies
• Food production/distribution
• Commercial banks
• Agriculture agents
• Teaching (high school, junior college or university)
• Feed/slaughter inspection
• Private consulting
• Laboratory technical support
• Animal caretakers
• Research scientists
• Genetics and Animal Breeding
• Population genetics
• Molecular genetics
• Genetic engineering
• Reproductive management
• Endocrinology
• Embryo technology
• Feeding programs
• Nutrition/reproduction interactions
• Nutrition/health/immunity interactions
• Food Science
• Product development 
• Food processing 
• Fermentation
• Grain companies
• Practice 
• Research 
• Teaching 
• Product development
• Quality control 
• Distribution and marketing

Become an ASAS member

Membership is open to individuals, organizations, or firms interested in research and application, instruction, or extension in animal science or associated with the production, processing, marketing, or distribution of livestock and livestock products.

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Department of Animal Science

The Department of Animal Science is recognized nationally and internationally for its excellent research, teaching, and extension programs in animal agriculture and animal biology. Our faculty members have received national recognition for the quality of their classroom instruction and attention to student needs and concerns.

Sudario Silva named Real Pork Scholar

The National Pork Board's Real Pork Scholars is a professional executive mentorship program for graduate students designed to leave a lasting impact on participants and the U.S. pork industry. Sudario Roberto Silva Junior is one of two U of M awardees, for his research focusing on swine nutrition and promoting sustainable and ethical pig production practices.

Isaac Salfer featured on KSTP-TV for National Farmer's Day

Assistant professor Isaac Salfer chatted with KSTP-TV on National Farmer's Day, highlighting the U of M Dairy Cattle Teaching and Research Farm and sharing his perspective on students finding interest in the dairy industry once they gain exposure to the field.

Intercollegiate Dairy Judging Contest

It was a glorious day for the gophers.

For many youth, the culmination of their junior dairy judging career rests on the Intercollegiate Dairy Judging Contest at World Dairy Expo. Years of practice, a love for dairy cattle, and a brain full of reasons terminology are put to the test during a long day of judging classes, giving reasons, and waiting for the results.

When the final awards were announced at the banquet held Sunday night following the 2023 national contests, the University of Minnesota judges and their coaches had plenty to smile about. That’s because their team was named the winner of the 2023 Intercollegiate Dairy Judging Contest.

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Student Life

Explore animal sciences.

Learn about our programs, research goals, and faculty by choosing what you want to study by animal or research discipline.

With a long-standing reputation for excellence in beef cattle research, our mission is to provide quality research and educational experiences for our graduate and undergraduate students. Our research goals are to enhance the quality of beef while decreasing the environmental footprint of production through research in a variety of disciplines.

Faculty studying beef cattle

Beef cattle facilities

As the first in the U.S. to establish a program in companion animal biology, our goal is to provide training in the basic sciences of companion animals as well as the human-animal interactions that so strongly affect our lives and society.

Faculty studying companion animals

Committed to meeting the challenges of the Illinois dairy industry and dairy farmers at large, our focus is on dairy cow nutrition, reproduction, and the results of its combination. Our mission includes quality research and educational experiences for our graduate and undergraduate students and dairy producers around the world.

Faculty studying dairy cattle

Dairy cattle facilities

We are one of the few animal sciences departments in the country with active research involving exotic species. Our faculty members are engaged in research concerning both captive and wild exotic animals all around the world.

Faculty studying exotic animals

Our department has been actively involved in the Illinois equine industry for many years. Our Standardbred horse farm is located walking distance from campus and specializes in assisted reproductive technologies. The horse farm also provides outstanding learning experiences for our undergraduate and graduate students.

Faculty studying horses

For nearly a century, we have been engaged in ground-breaking research with poultry. Our program focuses mainly on nutrition, but also encompasses reproduction, genetics, health, and product quality. Our goals are to enhance the sustainability of poultry production for producers, consumers, and the environment.

Faculty studying poultry

Poultry research farm

While not considered traditional animal sciences species, rodents serve as excellent models for both production agriculture and human health. Our faculty are actively engaged in research involving reproduction, development, immunology, nutrition, and neuroscience using rodent models.

Faculty studying rodents

Our mission is to continue to serve as leaders in the area of swine research, providing quality research and educational experiences for our graduate and undergraduate students. Our research goals are to enhance swine production and profitability of the swine industry while safeguarding the environment.

Faculty studying swine

Swine facilities

Disciplines

Molecular genetics, genomics, bioengineering, and immunogenetics relate to the study of the structure and function of genes and their influence on complex traits. Bioinformatics, quantitative and population genetics, and statistical genomics integrate phenotypic and genetic information at the molecular, cellular, individual, and population levels through advances in computer science, mathematics, molecular biology, and statistics.

Faculty studying genetics, genomics, and bioinformatics

The immunophysiology and behavior program explores how environmental stimuli on the immune system affect disease resistance and how cells of the immune system, and their secreted cytokine gene products, interact with different physiologic systems to affect growth and development, nutrition and metabolism, neural pathways that regulate behavior, and health and well-being.

Faculty studying immunophysiology and behavior

The meat science and muscle biology program, housed in the Meat Science Laboratory, provides students with the opportunity for hands-on experience while they learn. Research focuses on the regulation of animal growth and development, technologies to improve animal production and efficiency, carcass yield and quality, and aspects of further processing.

Faculty studying meat science and muscle biology

Meat science laboratory

The microbiology program provides a strong foundation and training in basic and applied microbiology, biochemistry, molecular genetics, ecology, genomics, and physiology and metabolism of anaerobic microorganisms. Multidisciplinary research in this field seeks to understand the interplay between microorganisms and the host.

These results will have profound implications on human and animal health alike.

Faculty studying microbiology

Nutrition encompasses research with swine, poultry, beef cattle, dairy cattle, sheep, dogs, cats, and laboratory rodents. Much of the research with food animals is directed toward improving the utilization of carbohydrates, fat, protein, and fiber for production of meat, milk, and eggs. Research with chicks, rodents, and pigs is often experimental or conceptual in nature so that the results go beyond species–specific answers to fundamental questions related to human health.

Faculty studying nutrition

Feed technology center

Learn and apply cutting-edge approaches and gain insight into the most current animal production and environmental management methods. Animal production research is primarily basic science discovery that impacts production outcome. Faculty who participate in production and management research use both basic and discovery sciences in animal sciences applications. Research uses many economically important species and incorporates novel treatments based upon new science discoveries and management methodologies.

Faculty studying production and environment management

The goal of this nationally recognized program is to understand the fundamental processes in reproduction and improve reproductive efficiency, when desired, or control or prevent reproduction, when reduced fertility is desired. Research includes a broad range of species and incorporates whole animal experiments, cell and tissue culture techniques, and molecular biology and genetic studies. Students have opportunities to learn and apply a multitude of cutting edge approaches to gain insight into reproductive biology and to solve important problems in reproduction.

Faculty studying reproductive biology

Title Animal Facilities

Our facilities around campus and the region give students working experience in the field and advance basic discovery and applied production research.

Title Meat & Egg Sales Room

Our university farms offer fresh and frozen meat, bacon, sausage, eggs, and much more for sale to the community.

Title Career Possibilities

Whether you see yourself working as a veterinarian or running the family farm, a degree from animal sciences will provide you with a hands-on education that will help you identify and solve the challenges of the future.

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• Future Perfect

Animal testing, explained

Is anything really “cruelty-free”?

by Celia Ford

It’s nearly impossible to go a day without benefitting from the suffering of animals. The ingredients in your toiletries and makeup; your medicine, vaccines, and implants; your cleaning supplies; the chemicals that helped grow your food — most of it was, at some point, tested on animals.

For centuries, the biological sciences have relied on animal testing. To figure out how a machine works, you need to disassemble it and check out its component parts. Understanding the living body, one of nature’s most complex and beautiful machines, is no different. Taking apart and fiddling with a toaster doesn’t hurt anyone, but dismantling a biological system certainly does.

Many scientists believe that experimenting on living animals is a necessary means of solving problems that affect both humans and animals. But these experiments often involve animals experiencing distress, whether from the side effects of an experimental drug, an intentionally inflicted illness, or simply their confined living situation. Some lucky lab animals get to spend their retirement in sanctuaries once they’re no longer needed. Most of the time, the animal dies, either as a direct consequence of the experiment or from euthanasia.

More often than not, animal research happens behind closed, locked, unmarked doors. That lack of transparency makes it difficult to know what to think about animal testing, and public opinion is tellingly divided. A 2018 Pew Research Center survey found that 47 percent of people in the US support the use of animals in scientific research, and 52 percent oppose it. Unlike climate change or reproductive health , where the parties are highly polarized, animal testing is one of few science-related policy issues where the attitudes of Republicans and Democrats are pretty similar: Both parties are split roughly 50-50.

Experimenting on animals places two seemingly good things — medical innovation and animal welfare — at odds. Even those who support animal research generally hold nuanced, conflicted beliefs about it, and questions about the nature and extent of animal testing are still hotly debated.

Inside this story

• What animal testing actually does
• Who is looking out for the welfare of animals
• The truth behind labels like “cruelty-free”
• The future of animal-free testing

Brands frequently mislead consumers about animal testing involving their products with vague labeling, and alternative research methods aren’t as broadly applicable as some activist organizations imply . Meanwhile, research facilities often ban employees from sharing photos of lab animals without institutional approval and rarely let the media observe experiments for themselves.

After spending six years as a neuroscience PhD student working in a lab with monkeys, I left academia with the impression that animal testing is neither as well-managed or justified as regulators claim, nor as malicious as others fear. Government agencies are starting to direct funding toward finding alternatives to animal testing, but the use of animals is deeply embedded in biological sciences.

A world without lab animals may be possible, but we don’t live in it yet. Here’s what’s actually going on.

What is animal testing?

Before humans invented microscopes, universities, or even paper, we were using animals for medical research. Over two millennia ago , ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle dissected dozens of animal species to better understand their anatomy and argued that studying their bodies could teach us a lot about our own biology. Over four centuries later, Galen of Pergamon , one of the most pivotal characters in Western medical history, performed public surgeries on animals ( especially monkeys ) for science, providing a spectacle that attracted curious audiences.

Today, animal experimentation is widespread and conducted far from the public eye. It falls under two broad, semi-overlapping umbrellas: biomedical research (which aims to understand, prevent, and treat diseases, as well as uncover fundamental information about how bodies work) and toxicology , or testing the effects of chemicals (including everything from toothpaste and makeup to pesticides) on living things.

Humans generally don’t want to be proverbial guinea pigs for new medicines or consumer products. We’d rather know that things are safe before we put them anywhere near our bodies. Companies, whether they deal in cosmetics or pharmaceuticals, also don’t want to be liable for poisoning their customers.

People can participate in experiments that might harm them, but historically, at best, such projects have been difficult to administer . At worst, they have involved illegal human experimentation that cast a long, dark shadow over the field of medical research.

The Tuskegee syphilis study , for example, put hundreds of poor Black men with untreated syphilis through decades of invasive tests in exchange for hot meals and basic medical treatment, just to see how the disease would progress if left untreated. Effective treatments became available during the study, but researchers withheld them. Once the experiment’s scandalous history was publicly disclosed in 1972 , the US government formalized basic ethical guidelines for human research and required Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) to approve studies on humans.

Today, many questions — like What is the lethal dose of this new drug? and Does this new surgical technique actually work? — can’t ethically be asked regarding humans without first being tested on a nonhuman subject.

For a long time, animals were the only alternative to humans available. To figure out the lethal dose of a new drug, scientists can give increasingly large amounts of it to mice and see what it takes to kill them. To test whether a brain implant actually relieves Parkinson’s symptoms, scientists do brain surgery on monkeys . Without computational models or cell cultures sophisticated enough to mimic the complicated interactions between organs, the options have historically been to use animals as a proxy or to drop or scale back your planned research.

We can only guess how many animals are being used in scientific experiments worldwide. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) publishes official reports on animal research every year, but they only include animals protected by the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), the federal law setting basic standards for the treatment and housing of certain farm animals and lab animals. The law covers dogs, cats, monkeys, guinea pigs, hamsters, pigs, rabbits, and sheep. In 2019, about 800,000 animals protected by AWA were used in research — 930,000, if you add those that lived in labs but were never included in a study.

Notably, the AWA doesn’t apply to mice and rats, which several studies estimate account for somewhere between 93 and 99 percent of all lab animals in the US. The AWA also excludes invertebrates like flies, worms, fish, and cephalopods like octopuses, whose intelligence makes them intriguing neuroscience subjects. The EU, which counts all vertebrates used in experiments, tallied about 10.6 million animals used in 2017. It’s harder to pin down a number in the US. Depending on who you ask , there might be 10 million rodents subjected to scientific experiments annually, or there might be 111 million. (Either way, it’s more than three times the number of rats in New York City.)

Rodents make appealing animal models for many scientists because they’re smart enough to learn simple tasks but are still socially regarded as pests; those who kill rats for a living don’t face the same kind of backlash as someone who, say, boasts about shooting a puppy . Nearly all mouse genes share functions with human genes, so at a basic level, their biology resembles ours. Mice only live for a year or two, enabling scientists to study things like chronic disease progression without waiting an entire human lifespan. And scientists can genetically alter mice in countless ways, knocking out or adding DNA to express diseases or make certain cell types glow under a microscope.

In some cases, a research question requires invasively studying a full, living biological system, but the gap between mice and humans is too wide. The USDA reported that 68,257 monkeys were used in 2019 to study subjects like SARS-CoV-2 , Parkinson’s disease , and HIV , where physiological and cognitive similarity to humans was a priority. Those primates were mostly macaques and marmosets; the use of chimpanzees (our closest ape relative) is now banned in many countries , including the US .

But monkey research may not be viable much longer. While hundreds of monkey experiments are being funded by the NIH , there aren’t enough long-tailed macaques to go around. In a desperate attempt to keep up with skyrocketing demand, thousands of wild-caught monkeys are illegally imported to US research institutions from countries like Cambodia. Two years ago, the long-tailed macaque was listed as endangered for the first time. PETA petitioned the US government to protect the species under the Endangered Species Act , which could end their use in research altogether, but the request has yet to be approved. Most people are uncomfortable with the idea of experimenting on an animal so similar to us, including some of the scientists who do it. However, many scientists and policymakers agree that we still don’t have non-animal alternatives that can answer tough research questions involving interactions between organs. Researchers worry that the looming primate shortage in the US — engendered by transportation restrictions and therapeutic testing requirements and exacerbated by pandemic-era demands — will limit our ability to respond to public health emergencies.

Monkeys are traditionally recognized as the only nonhuman animals that react to drugs with human-specific targets, meaning that in some cases, their body’s reactions could uniquely predict whether a drug will be safe and effective for humans. During the first years of the Covid-19 pandemic, monkeys were considered so crucial to SARS-CoV-2 research that when the rhesus macaque supply dried up, scientists didn’t turn to cell cultures or computer models — they just looked for different monkeys .

You might not agree that this research justifies the nonconsensual use of highly intelligent animals; many don’t, for both ethical and scientific reasons. But it’s happening, and if you’ve been vaccinated or take medications, you’ve likely benefited from it.

Who’s looking out for the welfare of lab animals?

The regulatory framework surrounding animal research is a tangled web of acronyms, committees, and working groups. Since the Animal Welfare Act was passed in 1966, the USDA has been in charge of enforcing it through inspections and annual reports.

In theory, researchers have to justify the use of animals in their work. To conduct an animal experiment, scientists in the US go through a review process with their Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), which decides whether animals are “necessary” and whether steps are being taken to minimize their pain.

IACUCs are mostly comprised of researchers who experiment on animals and the veterinarians who help them, strongly biasing committees toward approving animal experiments. In the US and elsewhere, scientists are subtly incentivized to use animals, even when they aren’t actually necessary. Academic journals tend to preferentially publish work with animal methods , and academic careers hinge on accumulating publications . These norms seep into the labs where animal experiments are performed. New animal researchers often receive explicit instructions on how to steer clear of animal rights activists, according to several researchers I spoke with while working as a neuroscientist (as well as my own experience).

This can make holding institutions accountable for animal welfare violations challenging. While researchers are required to report information about animals in their facilities, like what medical procedures they’ve received and when they’ve been fed, they are told to keep these reports “ minimal, but complete .” In other words: Avoid including photos, videos, or graphic descriptions that could enrage activists or entice the media.

There also isn’t a clear legal definition for “animal cruelty” in research settings beyond violations of the basic standards outlined by the Animal Welfare Act. This leaves some room for interpretation about what is acceptable and what would constitute illegal treatment. The EU’s Directive 2010/63/EU , its equivalent of the Animal Welfare Act, emphasizes that animals should only be used if there are no other options and if the potential benefits of the research outweigh the animals’ suffering.

This cost-benefit analysis is subjective. For example, a team of immunologists studying cancer in mice would probably say that the potential public health benefits of their work justify harming mice. A team of science policy experts at PETA would say that mice aren’t ours to use and that these experiments often don’t translate to human trials, anyway .

To bridge this ethical divide, research universities and private companies in the UK have signed a Concordat on Openness on Animal Research , pledging to proactively and transparently inform the public about their treatment of lab animals. In the decade since its launch, nine other countries have followed suit. It’s likely not a coincidence that these countries generally have the tightest restrictions on animal use. However, an independent review found that Concordat signatories in the UK are still struggling to be transparent about their animal research practices in the face of potential disapproval.

On top of the slow pace for necessary regulation, stigma obscures the true nature of what happens in these labs. In the late 2000s, the most extreme opponents of animal testing used violence to try to end the practice, sending poisoned razors and death threats to lab heads and, in at least one case, firebombing a neurobiologist’s car . But rather than encourage scientists to reconsider their methods, attacks like these cemented a culture of silence. While physical violence is not representative of activism against animal testing today — which usually centers around investigations , government advocacy , and direct care for animals and has shifted to become more inclusive — the threat of retaliation still haunts animal researchers , some of whom are encouraged by their institutions to hide their connections to animal testing from the public.

Scientists “don’t want to feel like they’re bad people,” said neuroscientist and author Garet Lahvis, who has written about primate research for Vox.

What if I want to avoid animal testing altogether? What does “cruelty-free” mean?

After learning about what lab animals go through, some people will want to find ways to avoid the products of animal testing. This is much easier said than done, however.

Animal testing is pervasive in health care. Many treatments we take for granted today, like anesthesia , flu shots , and allergy medications , went through preclinical trials in animals before reaching us. They are also valuable to your health, so please keep taking your medicine if you need it. We have more power to avoid animal testing elsewhere. Animal testing requirements are generally looser to nonexistent for cosmetics, cleaning supplies, and other household chemicals, so it’s possible to buy “cruelty-free” makeup or laundry detergent.

The legal distinction between “cosmetics” and “drugs” is blurry, though. Essentially, drugs claim to affect the body’s structure or function in some way, while cosmetics are things you apply to your body to change your appearance (like lipstick) or clean yourself (like deodorant — but not soap, which is neither a cosmetic nor a drug, but its own special category ). Many products we might think of as cosmetics are, in fact, also drugs, like anti-dandruff shampoo, tinted moisturizer with sunscreen, and other cosmetics that claim to treat some ailment. In the US, all of these items had to be tested on animals until the FDA Modernization Act 2.0 took effect in 2023 .

Cruelty-free claims used on product labels are often misleading, and differences in regulation across countries add to the confusion.

For years, the EU , Canada, Mexico, and 16 other countries (including South Korea, for the skincare girlies ) have had legislation in place banning animal testing for cosmetics or their ingredients (although last year, the UK changed their policy to allow testing for makeup ingredients again). But testing on final products or their ingredients has never been banned in the US. Even if a company doesn’t test its final product on animals, it may still run animal tests on raw ingredients. And even if those raw ingredients aren’t currently being tested on animals, they probably were when they were first introduced.

The US government doesn’t have a legal definition for the terms “cruelty-free” or “not tested on animals.” A product labeled “cruelty-free” likely earned voluntary certification from a private organization like Leaping Bunny or PETA’s Beauty Without Bunnies program by pledging to end animal testing at all stages of product development. The definition of “cruelty-free” isn’t standardized across animal protection groups, but earning a “bunny label” generally means that a brand attested to never conducting tests on animals during a product’s development.

Despite pressure from advocates and consumers, many US companies don’t bother with these pledges on animal testing. As of this year, approximately 310 brands globally still test their beauty and household cleaning products on animals. And some actively say they don’t test on animals at all but still sell their products to countries like China, which, until recently, required that all cosmetics (even imported ones) be tested on animals . Most certification programs exclude brands and products sold in China for this very reason.

To make it easier for US companies to sell truly cruelty-free products in China, US regulators and animal welfare advocates have been lobbying their Chinese counterparts for years to change their approach to animal testing for consumer products. Twenty years ago, Thomas Hartung, a toxicologist at the Johns Hopkins Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing, spoke with the National Medical Products Administration (China’s FDA) about regulating animal testing of chemicals and told me “it was like we were coming from Mars.”

In response to yearslong campaigns by organizations like PETA and the Institute for In Vitro Sciences, China recently lifted this requirement . It is now possible to buy Chinese cosmetics that weren’t tested on animals — kind of.

As of January 2021, China no longer requires pre-market or post-market animal testing for cosmetics, meaning that companies from the US and elsewhere can sell things like eyeliner or nail polish in China while still maintaining “cruelty-free” status. But certain “special cosmetics,” like sunscreen, teeth whiteners, and hair dye, or products made for children, are all still required to undergo animal testing. And if a product uses a raw ingredient that isn’t already approved in China, foreign companies have to either reformulate or get that ingredient approved, which requires more animal testing. So, it’s possible to sell US-made “cruelty-free” products in China, but it requires sifting through a confusing and ever-evolving swamp of documentation requirements.

We have made imperfect progress toward a world of cruelty-free cosmetics. While the number of animals used for cosmetic testing in the US has dropped by 90 percent since the 1980s, 44 of the largest 50 cosmetic brands in the world still are not cruelty-free . And without a consensus agreement on what “cruelty-free” actually means, consumers are left to guess which bunny labels are genuine and which are false advertising.

Since many brands can just slap on cruelty-free claims while still sending products abroad to animal testing labs, for now, if you want to avoid animal testing, Leaping Bunny and Beauty Without Bunnies are your best bets. These certifications consider post-market animal testing in other countries as part of their standards.

Alternative methods are (slowly) coming

In some places, like the UK, strict restrictions on animal research and a commitment to transparency have considerably improved lab conditions in recent decades. Companies like Neuralink , however, continue to perform high-risk, ethically dubious experiments hidden from the public eye.

While new alternative methods are under development, animal testing remains necessary in at least some circumstances. Tight regulation — and buy-in from scientists — will be key to minimizing harm in the meantime.

Nicole Kleinstreuer, acting director of the NTP Interagency Center for the Evaluation of Alternative Toxicological Methods (NICEATM) , told me that improving the current state of animal testing hinges on researchers gathering “the courage to admit that we can substantially improve upon how we’ve been doing things historically.”

Until relatively recently, alternatives to animal testing in many areas of science were very limited. But in the past decade, bioengineering and computer science have advanced rapidly. New tools like AI, organoids (balls of stem cells that grow into organ tissue), and CRISPR have made replacing animals, at least in certain experiments, more attainable.

For chemical testing, good animal-free research methods have been around for decades — long before most scientists considered using them. Even when well-validated animal alternatives exist, researchers can be slow to adopt them . Hartung, a toxicologist, said, “I turned 60 last year. The methods they’re using were introduced when I was in kindergarten.”

In 2007, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine , a nonprofit that produces independent policy guidance for the US, laid out a strategy for researchers to move away from using animals in toxicity testing and to develop faster, more human-relevant models to take their place. Today, a number of working groups, both within the US and collaborating internationally, are still trying to put this principle into practice.

As the largest single public funder of biomedical research in the world, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is uniquely positioned to influence animal testing. In 2023, the NIH spent an estimated $19 billion on US-based projects involving animals, according to Citizens for Alternatives to Animal Research and Experimentation. Between 2011 and 2021, they spent $2.2 billion on projects based in other countries — where oversight boils down to trusting self-generated, non-validated reports from foreign institutions.

Kleinstreuer said that changing the current state of animal research “really necessitates a sea change, and a dramatic investment on the part of funders, particularly the NIH.”

The people in charge of the money have the power to redistribute it and could choose to spend more of it on projects that don’t use animals and less on those that do. That’s the easy part. “It’s kind of the lowest-hanging fruit, and the easiest ask,” said Emily Trunnell , director of Science Advancement and Outreach at PETA. “Even people who are in support of animal testing are on board with the funding of different methods as well.”

NICEATM, led by Kleinstreuer, is doing the in-the-weeds work of figuring out how we’d know whether a replacement method is good enough to substitute for animal experiments. Earlier this year, the NIH also approved the Complement Animal Research in Experimentation (Complement-ARIE) Program , which will set up technology development centers for researchers to make better human-based models.

Non-animal methods can already outperform certain animal tests. Back in 2018, Hartung’s research group created algorithms mapping the relationships between 10,000 known chemical compounds. With this model and lots of data, they predicted the toxicity of 89 percent of the 48,000 toxic chemicals more accurately than animal tests could and for much less money — without endangering any living creatures. Since then, Hartung said things have only become better. But AI-driven research methods are still limited by what real-world data has already been collected. “When you have no data,” he said, “nothing is possible.”

In some cases, using animals is simply bad science. There are some questions “that absolutely necessitate a human cell-based approach,” Kleinstreuer said. “You can’t look at the efficacy of a drug whose target is not expressed in animals by using animal models,” she added. Certain cancer drugs target protein receptors that only exist in humans, and gene therapies often aim to rewrite human-specific DNA sequences. One emerging option: take a sample of human cells, reprogram them to behave like whatever cells you want them to be, and test your drug on the resulting tissue sample.

These tools offer exciting opportunities to personalize medicine to individual patients, but it’s still tough to extrapolate results from a small mass of lab-grown cells in a tightly controlled environment to a human body and the complex interactions of its organ systems. Cancer and embryonic development are incredibly complex biological processes, involving lots of different interconnected body parts that evolve over time. Without that capability, Kleinstreuer said it’s harder to argue that a substance is actually safe and ready to clear for human use.

Change happens one retirement at a time

As it stands, alternatives to animal tests are not being used as widely as they should be, especially in cosmetics. But if we want to study things like deep brain stimulation or run safety tests on new cancer drugs , animal tests are all we have.

While we are stuck with animal experiments, we can try to limit them and make them more humane. Lahvis believes that we should have extremely strict criteria for what animal experiments are funded. Strategically allocating grant funding could not only save millions of lives, but also inspire better science.

Convincing animal researchers to replace animals with other methods is still a huge challenge. Hartung joked that in academia, change happens “one retirement at a time.” Unfortunately, “it’s often been one graveyard at a time,” as retired scientists continue to serve as reviewers who help choose what new projects get funded and published.

The further along a scientist is in their career, the more challenging it becomes to pivot. Because scientists are pushed to maintain a constant level of productivity, Trunnell said, someone who builds their whole lab around their current use of animal models has no incentive to change, unless they have a strong desire to do so. Changing tactics could mean putting their job on the line.

“We’re highly leveraged by the system to keep doing what we’ve always done,” Lahvis agreed. And, Hartung said, turning against a tried-and-true method would require a scientist invalidating their existing body of work or at least acknowledging that it was either unethical, ineffective, or inefficient. Using past observations to inform future experiments is at the core of the scientific method, but, Hartung said, “We’re not trained to be very self-critical.”

That said, a growing number of scientists support the development of non-animal methods, even as they continue to work with animals themselves. People want new tools, whether for the sake of animal welfare or simply because it would make for better science. We might just have to wait another generation.

• Animal Welfare

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When bats were wiped out, more human babies died, a study found. Here's why

Researchers find infant deaths increased after farmers used more pesticides to compensate for rise of pests.

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A deadly pandemic has decimated bats in North America — and that has ultimately had harmful effects on humans, including higher rates of infant mortality, according to a new study.

The research is part of growing evidence that humans rely on the animal and plant species around them, and are harmed when those species decline or go extinct.

White-nose syndrome is a deadly fungal disease that kills an average of 70 per cent of bats it infects, and has been spreading to new areas since it was first reported on the continent in 2006.

The disease wakes bats during their hibernation, often causing them to freeze and starve to death.

What happens when bats aren't there for farmers?

Ecologists know that bats play a crucial role in eating up and controlling insect pests.

Because of that, Eyal Frank, an environmental economist at the University of Chicago, decided to look at what happened when white-nose syndrome spread into new counties in the eastern U.S., decimating bat populations.

He found that farmers responded to the resulting insect outbreaks by increasing their pesticide use 31 per cent. Pesticides are toxic, and often associated with human health impacts such as increases in infant deaths.

Frank found that infant mortality went up eight per cent after the arrival of white-nose syndrome in a county, according to his study published today in the journal Science .

"At first I was surprised," Frank said, noting those increases are "big effects."

But he noted that in regions affected by white-nose syndrome, bat populations don't just decline, but plummet, and are often wiped out altogether.

"This is really turning off the switch on biological pest control in some of these counties," he said.

That forces farmers to compensate with "a lot more insecticides," which he notes are toxic by design.

• World's globetrotting animals at risk due to habitat loss, climate change

Frank also found evidence that not only were the pesticides expensive, but they weren't as good as the bats at controlling insects — farmers' revenue from crop sales fell 29 per cent in areas hit by the bat pandemic.

He estimates that in total, farmers in communities with bat die-offs lost $26.9 billion between 2006 and 2017. Putting a number to damages from infant mortality resulted in a societal cost of $39.6 billion from the loss of bats.

B.C. researchers trying to stave off deadly bat disease

The importance of biodiversity.

The study shows how interactions between species such as bats and insects stabilize the ecosystems that other species rely on, including humans, who can be harmed when those species disappear, Frank said.

"These ecosystems are very complex systems with many interactions between species, and we do not fully understand what to expect or what will happen when we allow one species to fall below some viable population level or to go extinct," said Frank, who had previously linked the deaths of half a million people in India to the collapse of local vulture populations due to accidental poisoning.

• When India's vulture population collapsed, half a million human deaths followed: study

He added that preserving more species and more biodiversity can provide redundancies so that if one species declines, another may be able to fill its role.

Jianping Xu, a McMaster University professor who studies white-nose syndrome in North American bats, said the new study shows that bats are important "not only for ecosystem, but also for agriculture and for human health."

Xu, who did not participate in the research, said the "data looks pretty solid." While the study focused on the eastern U.S., Xu said white-nose syndrome is in all 10 Canadian provinces, and bats here are even more affected, as it's colder and they have a longer hibernation.

He'd like to see similar Canadian data on the link between bat declines,  pesticides and infant mortality.

"I wouldn't be surprised if Canadian data show a similar pattern," he said.

Xu added that increased use of pesticides is also linked to bat declines, creating a "vicious cycle." He believes pesticide applications should be limited to areas without bats.

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Bruce Lanphear, a health sciences professor and expert in pesticides at Simon Fraser University, said the study "elegantly" uses the pandemic among bats as a natural experiment to show the impact of pesticides on human health. But he noted the research has limitations in determining which pesticides were implicated in these health impacts.

Lanphear, who has been critical of the federal government's transparency when it comes to pesticides, said the findings should also lead us to "ask questions like, 'Why aren't our governments finding ways to reduce pesticide use?'"

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Science, Climate, Environment Reporter

Emily Chung covers science, the environment and climate for CBC News. She has previously worked as a digital journalist for CBC Ottawa and as an occasional producer at CBC's Quirks & Quarks. She has a PhD in chemistry from the University of British Columbia. In 2019, she was part of the team that won a Digital Publishing Award for best newsletter for "What on Earth." You can email story ideas to [email protected].

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Not Kidding: Yellow Dye 5 May Be the Key to Invisibility

Sari Harrar

September 06, 2024

The same dye that gives Twinkies their yellowish hue could be the key to invisibility. 

Applying the dye to lab mice made their skin temporarily transparent, allowing Stanford University researchers to observe the rodents' digestive system, muscle fibers, and blood vessels, according to a study published September 5 in Science .

"It's a stunning result," said senior author Guosong Hong, PhD, who is assistant professor of materials science and engineering at Stanford. "If the same technique could be applied to humans, it could offer a variety of benefits in biology, diagnostics, and even cosmetics." 

The work drew upon optical concepts first described in the early 20th century to form a surprising theory: Applying a light-absorbing substance could render skin transparent by reducing the chaotic scattering of light as it strikes proteins, fats, and water in tissue. 

A search for a suitable light absorber led to FD&C Yellow 5, also called tartrazine, a synthetic color additive certified by the US Food and Drug Administration for use in foods, cosmetics, and medications. 

Rubbed on live mice (after areas of fur were removed using a drugstore depilatory cream), tartrazine rendered skin on their bellies, hind legs, and heads transparent within 5 minutes. With the naked eye, the researchers watched a mouse's intestines, bladder, and liver at work. Using a microscope, they observed muscle fibers and saw blood vessels in a living mouse's brain — all without making incisions. Transparency faded quickly when the dye was washed off.

Someday, the concept could be used in doctors' offices and hospitals, Hong said. 

"Instead of relying on invasive biopsies, doctors might be able to diagnose deep-seated tumors by simply examining a person's tissue without the need for invasive surgical removal," he said. "This technique could potentially make blood draws less painful by helping phlebotomists easily locate veins under the skin. It could also enhance procedures like laser tattoo removal by allowing more precise targeting of the pigment beneath the skin."

From Cake Frosting to Groundbreaking Research

Yellow 5 food dye can be found in everything from cereal, soda, spices, and cake frosting to lipstick, mouthwash, shampoo, dietary supplements, and house paint. Although it's in some topical medications, more research is needed before it could be used in human diagnostics, said Christopher J. Rowlands, PhD, a senior lecturer in the Department of Bioengineering at Imperial College London, UK, where he studies biophotonic instrumentation — ways to image structures inside the body more quickly and clearly. 

But the finding could prove useful in research. In a commentary published in Science , Rowlands and his colleague Jon Gorecki, PhD, an experimental optical physicist also at Imperial College London, note that the dye could be an alternative to other optical clearing agents currently used in lab studies, such as glycerol, fructose, or acetic acid. Advantages are the effect is reversible and works at lower concentrations with fewer side effects. This could broaden the types of studies possible in lab animals, so researchers don't have to rely on naturally transparent creatures like nematodes and zebrafish. 

The dye could also be paired with imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or electron microscopy. 

"Imaging techniques all have pros and cons," Rowlands said. "MRI can see all the way through the body albeit with limited resolution and contrast. Electron microscopy has excellent resolution but limited compatibility with live tissue and penetration depth. Optical microscopy has subcellular resolution, the ability to label things, excellent biocompatibility but less than 1 millimeter of penetration depth. This clearing method will give a substantial boost to optical imaging for medicine and biology."

The discovery could improve the depth imaging equipment can achieve by tenfold, according to the commentary. 

Brain research especially stands to benefit. "Neurobiology in particular will have great use for combinations of multiphoton, optogenetics, and tissue clearing to record and control neural activity over (potentially) the whole mouse brain," he said.

Refraction, Absorption, and The Invisible Man

The dye discovery has distant echoes in H.G. Wells' 1897 novel The Invisible Man , Rowlands noted. In the book, a serum makes the main character invisible by changing the light scattering — or refractive index (RI) — of his cells to match the air around him.

The Stanford engineers looked to the past for inspiration, but not to fiction. They turned to a concept first described in the 1920s called the Kramers-Kronig relations, a mathematical principle that can be applied to relationships between the way light is refracted and absorbed in different materials. They also read up on Lorentz oscillation, which describes how electrons and atoms inside molecules react to light. 

They reasoned that light-absorbing compounds could equalize the differences between the light-scattering properties of proteins, lipids , and water that make skin opaque. 

With that, the search was on. The study's first author, postdoctoral researcher Zihao Ou, PhD, began testing strong dyes to find a candidate. Tartrazine was a front-runner. 

"We found that dye molecules are more efficient in raising the refractive index of water than conventional RI-matching agents, thus resulting in transparency at a much lower concentration," Huong said. "The underlying physics, explained by the Lorentz oscillator model and Kramers-Kronig relations, reveals that conventional RI matching agents like fructose are not as efficient because they are not 'colored' enough."

What's Next

Though the dye is already in products that people consume and apply to their skin, medical use is years away. In some people, tartrazine can cause skin or respiratory reactions. 

The National Science Foundation (NSF), which helped fund the research, posted a home or classroom activity related to the work on its website. It involves painting a tartrazine solution on a thin slice of raw chicken breast, making it transparent. The experiment should only be done while wearing a mask, eye protection, lab coat, and lab-quality nitrile gloves for protection, according to the NSF.

Meanwhile, Huong said his lab is looking for new compounds that will improve visibility through transparent skin, removing a red tone seen in the current experiments. And they're looking for ways to induce cells to make their own "see-through" compounds. 

"We are exploring methods for cells to express intensely absorbing molecules endogenously, enabling genetically encoded tissue transparency in live animals," he said.

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