The Reason Why A Medical Experiments Often Use Mice

News24xx.com -  It turns out that mice play a very important role in medical experiments. From the formulation of new cancer drugs to testing food supplements, mice play an important role in new medical wonders.

In fact, according to the Foundation for Biomedical Research (FBR), 95% of laboratory animals are rats. Scientists and researchers depend on mice for several reasons. One of them, the rodent is small, easily stored and maintained and can adapt well to the new environment.

These animals reproduce quickly and are short-lived (2-3 years) so that several generations of mice can be observed in a short time.

In addition, mice are relatively inexpensive and can be purchased in large quantities from commercial producers that breed special rodents for research. Generally, mice are obedient and these animals are easily handled by researchers, although there are several types that are difficult to handle.

Most medical mice are almost genetically identical, except sex. According to the National Human Genome Research Institute, this helps to uniform the results of medical trials. As a minimum requirement, rats have the same race.

Another reason mice are used as a medical test model is their genetics, their biological characteristics and behavior are very similar to humans, and many symptoms of the human condition can be replicated in mice.

"Mice are mammals that have many processes like humans and can be used to answer many research questions," said representative of the National Institutes of Health Office of Laboratory Welfare Jenny Haliski.

Over the past two decades, the similarity has strengthened. Now, scientists can develop 'transgenic mice' that carry genes similar to the causes of human disease. Mice also made efficient research because their anatomy, physiology and genetics were well understood by researchers.