Abstract
The advantages and justifications for using small animals in human-orientated research are briefly over-viewed. Some of the potential pitfalls of extrapolating animal-derived data to humans are then discussed more fully, using examples biased towards nutrition. A number of particular problems of animal experimentation are highlighted: the applicability of the results of controlled, deliberately reductionist, laboratory experiments to arguments about free-living animals and humans; species differences in nutrient requirements; differences in pattern of feeding and type of diet of mammalian species; and various facets of the problem of scaling from small to large species. The enormous contribution of animal experimentation to the advancement of human biological understanding is accepted, but by focusing attention of biological educators on examples, perceived by the author to have involved inappropriate cross-species extrapolation, it is hoped that this paper may help to increase the future effectiveness and reduce waste of experimental animals.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
