Studying the human brain is difficult because of its vast and intricate network of neural connections. The fruit fly offers a simpler but similar model that researchers can more easily map.
As an animal model, the zebrafish offers many advantages that save researchers time and money.
Uri Manor/NICHD via Flickr
Of the many qualities that make the zebrafish a model organism, the fact that it shares 70% of the genes humans have makes it an ideal candidate for developmental biology research.
The lung-on-a-chip can mimic both the physical and mechanical qualities of a human lung.
Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, Harvard University/Flickr
Guidelines and regulations weigh the medical and health benefits of animal research with researchers’ ability to ensure humane care of their subjects from start to finish.
Rhesus macaques experience an aging process similar to people’s.
Goddard Photography/E+ via Getty Images
Nonhuman primates like rhesus monkeys share certain characteristics with people that may make them better study subjects than mice for research on neurodegenerative diseases.
It is possible to grow cells from a skin sample in a Petri dish and transform them into neurons in about a month.
(Camille Pernegre)
A biomedical engineer explains the basic research that led to the discovery of insulin and its transformation into a lifesaving treatment for millions of people with diabetes.
Whether it’s birds in a flock or drivers in traffic, agent-based modelling can describe complex phenomena by applying a simple set of rules to each individual’s behaviour.
Barry Sweet/EPA
Yohan Kim, University of Technology Sydney; Jay Falletta, University of Technology Sydney, and Scott Kelly, University of Technology Sydney
By identifying and applying the key rules governing the behaviour of each individual, agent-based modelling offers insights into complex phenomena like traffic jams and flocking.
Could it be that a baby has all the brain cells she ever will?
Jv Garcia on Unsplash
Neuroscience labs around the world may need to reevaluate some of their assumptions about whether what works in animals will really produce meaningful treatments for people.
Despite killing a majority of people it infects, some patients survive the onslaught of Ebola virus. What gives them this resistance, ask Michael Katze, professor of microbiology, and colleagues from the…