SOURCES OF VARIABILITY IN ANIMAL MODELS AND THEIR INFLUENCE ON TRANSLATIONAL POTENTIAL

• Published in: Physiological research 2023-09, Vol.72 (5), p.P16-P17
• Main Authors: Plevkova, J, Kopcova, L, Biringerova, Z, Matloobi, A, Buday, T
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animal models; Animal welfare; Biomedical research; Diurnal variations; Germfree; Medical research; Microbiomes; Quality of life; Sex; Standardization; Statistics; Translation; Variables; Womens health
• ISSN: 0862-8408; 1802-9973

Biomedical research has an ultimate role to improve prevention, diagnostics and treatment of human diseases, which are decreasing the quality of life via deterioration of the health status. Therefore, animal models should replicate real human diseases or pathological conditions and the data obtained in animal studies should have comprehensive translational potential or straightforward clinical application. Biomedical research outputs conducted on animals are, despite rigorous standardization and validation, influenced by known/controlled and unknown/uncontrolled variables all of which are decreasing statistical significance of the research outcomes and quite common strategy to avoid statistical insignificance is exclusion of outlier results from the research process (there is some confusion about the uncontrolled variables and outlier results, these two are not synonymous). Although this exclusion makes the samples more homogenous and data less variable, this process considerably reduces translational potential of animal studies denying their significance. One of the most obvious and often ignored biological variable is the sex bias in biomedical research. Exclusion of female mammals from research, which compromised health of women, by excluding Also the previously accepted strategy of using SPF or germ-free animals is questioned in the light of the information about the microbiome importance. Considering the animal welfare principles, scientists should apply 4Rs rather than 3Rs into the practice, where the last R stands for "rational" approach. This work discusses variables such is interspecies difference, sex, season, diurnal variation and microbiome status which should be rather considered than ignored, because human diseases are affecting both sexes (there are more important aspects of sex bias that deserve attention and they should be reflected in the presentation).