Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 6
THE DERIVATION AND MANIPULATION
OF EXPERIMENTAL ANIMALS IN
BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES
A.
Introduction
Scientists strive to perform as many experiments as possible in vitro,
using defined cell lines, isolated proteins, and their cloned counterparts.
In vitro experiments have many advantages, including the ability to use
purified reagents under controlled conditions so that other variables
that could affect the experimental outcome are eliminated. However,
the test tube is not a replacement for the complex interactions that oc-
cur in living organisms, and cell lines cannot replicate the alterations
that arise during a disease state. Consequently, the use of experimental
animals is a necessary, albeit controversial, component of biomedical
research.
Experimental animals are an invaluable resource for mapping and
identifying genes that contribute to disease susceptibility, for testing the
functions of normal genes and their mutant counterparts in context, and
for the testing of drugs to treat a variety of diseases. A few animal species
have proven most useful because their genetic makeup can be altered
either by controlled breeding or by experimental manipulation. Experi-
mentally, it is now possible to introduce new genes into the genomes
of these animals. It is also possible to “target” existing genes and mu-
tate them, or delete them altogether. These animals, primarily rodent
species, have proven especially helpful as the genes that cause hu-
man diseases have been mapped, and their identity determined. Animal
studies have allowed scientists to both determine the normal functions
of these genes, and to establish high fidelity animal models of human
diseases for study and for testing new therapies for the treatment of
these diseases. Genetically altered rodents, especially mice, are used
to study the affects of genes and gene products in essentially all fields in
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