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Animals
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The Use of Animals in Animal Experimentation
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The Use of Animals in Animal Experimentation

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Welfare".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 January 2022) | Viewed by 15447

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Cristina Castillo Rodríguez

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Departamento de Patoloxía Animal, Facultade de Veterinaria, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 27002 Lugo, Spain
Interests: ruminants; oxidative stress; nutrition metabolism; sustainable farming; intensive production
Prof. Dr. María del Mar Yllera Fernández

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Unit of Veterinary Anatomy and Embryology, Department of Anatomy, Animal Production and Clinical Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, University of Santiago de Compostela–Campus of Lugo, 27002 Lugo, Spain
Interests: animal anatomy; embryology; welfare, behaviour and anatomy of laboratory animals; applied anatomy of exotic animals; veterinary embryology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, social pressure against the use of experimental animals and scientists' own awareness, aided by a greater understanding of the needs of animals, has prompted the conduct of multiple studies to decrease the number of animals used and improve their welfare without compromising the reliability of the results.

Thus, in vitro methods (cell cultures, computer simulations, etc.) have been developed that provide an initial idea of the behavior of a new product or a pathogen in the body of an individual. Although they have proven to be very useful in reducing the number of live animals used in experimentation, they cannot replace them in their entirety since it is impossible to emulate the complexity of a living organism in a Petri dish or with a computer.Animal models are necessary to study the mode of action of emerging disease pathogens, and to test treatments and vaccines on them. Likewise, in a world overcrowded with humans, it is necessary to research new food alternatives and search new food sources for slaughter animals. Depending on the nature of the study, it will be necessary to use not only rodents and rabbits, but also other species such as dogs, cats, ruminants, or pigs, among others.

However, for ethical reasons, it is important to reduce the number of animals used to the minimum necessary to obtain reliable results, and ensure their welfare at all times.

Taking this scenario into account, this Special Issue aims to address several topics, including:

  • When is it necessary to use experimentation animals in veterinary medicine research?
  • Are there reliable alternatives to the use of experimental animals? How valid are they?
  • Importance of the care and handling of experimental animals: could they affect the experimental results?
  • Importance of the 3Rs (reduction, replacement, and refinement) in animal experimentation.
  • Statistical models for reliable results with the least number of animals. The importance of the R program.
  • Is legislation on animal experimentation similar in all countries? How can this affect the repeatability and reliability of the studies?
  • Which animal species are the most suitable for each specific study: nutrition, veterinary vaccines, therapeutics, etc.? This item includes not only rodents but also other animal species (ruminants, pigs, dogs, or cats, among others).
  • Welfare of experimental animals: behavior, environmental enrichment. New studies or methods. Its importance in stress reduction.

These will be the main topics addressed, and we encourage authors to present their experiences about the above-mentioned questions, so that this Special Issue constitutes a reference publication when dealing with experimental research projects.

Prof. Cristina Castillo Rodríguez
Prof. Mar Yllera Fernández
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • animal welfare
  • policies
  • animal experimentation
  • alternatives
  • management

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Review

13 pages, 3249 KiB  
Review
Ruminal Fistulation and Cannulation: A Necessary Procedure for the Advancement of Biotechnological Research in Ruminants
by Cristina Castillo and Joaquin Hernández
Animals 2021, 11(7), 1870; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11071870 - 23 Jun 2021
Cited by 22 | Viewed by 11651
Abstract
Rumen content is a complex mixture of feed, water, fermentation products, and living organisms such as bacteria, fungi, and protozoa, which vary over time and with different feeds. As it is impossible to reproduce this complex system in the laboratory, surgical fistulation and [...] Read more.
Rumen content is a complex mixture of feed, water, fermentation products, and living organisms such as bacteria, fungi, and protozoa, which vary over time and with different feeds. As it is impossible to reproduce this complex system in the laboratory, surgical fistulation and cannulation of the rumen is a powerful tool for the study (in vivo and in situ) of the physiology and biochemistry of the ruminant digestive system. Rumen fistulation in cattle, sheep, and goats has been performed extensively to advance our understanding of digestive physiology and development, nutrient degradability, and rumen microbial populations. The literature reports several fistulation and cannulation procedures in ruminants, which is not the focus of this paper. However, this method questions the ethical principles that alter the opinions of certain animal groups or those opposed to animal experimentation. In this article, we analyze the objectives of fistulation and cannulation of ruminants and the care needed to ensure that the welfare of the animal is maintained at all times. Due to the ethical issues raised by this technique, several in vitro digestion methods for simulating ruminal fermentation have been developed. The most relevant ones are described in this article. Independently of the procedure, we want to point out that research carried out with animals is obliged by legislation to follow strict ethical protocols, following the well-being and health status of the animal at all times. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Use of Animals in Animal Experimentation)
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13 pages, 757 KiB  
Review
Does the Animal Model Influence in Vertical Alveolar Distraction? A Systematic Review of the Literature
by Mario García-González, Fernando Muñoz, Antonio González-Cantalapiedra, Mónica López-Peña and Nikola Saulacic
Animals 2020, 10(12), 2347; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10122347 - 9 Dec 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2726
Abstract
This study is aimed at synthesizing all available evidence on vertical alveolar osteogenesis distraction (VAOD) in animal trials to determine whether the animal model used and its handling influence or not, and find which is the most appropriate animal model for this specific [...] Read more.
This study is aimed at synthesizing all available evidence on vertical alveolar osteogenesis distraction (VAOD) in animal trials to determine whether the animal model used and its handling influence or not, and find which is the most appropriate animal model for this specific technique. This systematic review has been carried out following the PRISMA statements. Bibliographic sources have been consulted manually by two reviewers. Risk of bias was assessed using a version of the Newcastle-Ottawa-Scale (NOS). The selection criteria established by expert researchers were applied in order to decide which studies should be included in the review. Twenty-six studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the review. Twenty-four of them had a high quality (score between 7 and 9), two medium quality (score between 4 and 6), and none low quality (score between 1 and 3). The highest possible score was 9 (using the NOS). Six studies complied with all NOS criteria. The animal model has been seen to influence the results, leading to failure in some cases. The most used animal model on VAOD, with fewer complications, was the Mongrel dog. The use of the pig and minipig is not recommended, due to the difficulties in handling and complications encountered. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Use of Animals in Animal Experimentation)
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