Animal Models
Animal Models and Apparatus of Sleep Disorders
June 16, 2023
Sleep problems affect a significant portion of the population, with over half of people in the United States reporting difficulties with sleep or excessive…
Maximum Volume of Oxygen (VO2) Testing in Rodents
February 8, 2023
Maximum volume of oxygen (VO2max) is a measure of the maximum amount of oxygen that an individual can consume during exercise. VO2max is expressed in…
Lactate Threshold Testing in Rodents
February 7, 2023
Lactate threshold testing is a measure of the intensity of exercise at which lactate begins to accumulate in the blood at a faster rate than it can be removed.…
Rodent Tagging and Identification
January 9, 2023
Animal tagging is a means to identify and distinguish all the individual animals of interest, which applies to wildlife, farm, or laboratory animals. It…
Animal Models
Although rodents are among the most popular animals used in animal research, they are not the only kind. Other species are also used for the sake of advancing science.
In general, a variety of animal models are used in neuroscience and behavioral research. Why? Because animal models create a physiological representation of the disease or condition that researchers are trying to gather more information on. With animal models, researchers can: better understand the underlying molecular mechanisms, alter disease symptoms through interventions, and establish how pharmaceuticals fit into the equation.
In this section, we cover how different types of animals, from sheep to pigs to zebrafish, are used in behavioral research.
For related content, browse through these Maze Engineers resources:
- Neurological Disease Models: A collection of rodent models that are specifically used to model neurological diseases. Featured topics range from seizures to PTSD to depression.
- Non-Neurological Disease Models: See how non-neurological diseases (which occur outside of the nervous system) are able to affect behavior. Here, we highlight how non-neurological disease models, like sepsis or renal failure, are used in neuroscience behavioral research.
- Nutrition and Drugs: Browse through our growing catalog of nutrition and drugs where we explore the relationship between them and behavior. In many cases, animal models are also mentioned.
Our Resources
Animal Models and Apparatus of Sleep Disorders
June 16, 2023
Sleep problems affect a significant portion of the population, with over half of people in the United States reporting difficulties with sleep or excessive…
Maximum Volume of Oxygen (VO2) Testing in Rodents
February 8, 2023
Maximum volume of oxygen (VO2max) is a measure of the maximum amount of oxygen that an individual can consume during exercise. VO2max is expressed in…
Lactate Threshold Testing in Rodents
February 7, 2023
Lactate threshold testing is a measure of the intensity of exercise at which lactate begins to accumulate in the blood at a faster rate than it can be removed.…
Rodent Tagging and Identification
January 9, 2023
Animal tagging is a means to identify and distinguish all the individual animals of interest, which applies to wildlife, farm, or laboratory animals. It…
Sheep as an Animal Model
November 27, 2018
The use of animal models in scientific research has a long history. Many species have contributed to research over the years, and if you asked a group of…
Behavioral Testing with Guinea Pigs
June 14, 2018
In regular conversation, guinea pigs are near synonymous with scientific experimentation. Yet despite this ubiquitous metaphor, guinea pigs are not often the…
Virtual Reality in Neuroscience: History, Applications, and Future
February 25, 2018
As imaginative as human beings are, it is no mystery how easy of a task it is to think up different worlds and live different lives, so to speak, all inside…
Cognitive Testing in Pigs
November 20, 2017
A quick read of the most current neuroscience headlines may provide the impression that nearly all animal testing is performed in rodents. Whether it’s testing…
A Guide to Testing Zebrafish Behavior
September 16, 2017
A transgenic zebrafish embryo in which GFP is conditionally expressed in radial glial cells. [Brion et al., 2012].
General Guide to Behavioral Testing in Mice
May 13, 2017
Introduction It is common practice in science to test new drugs on rodents before testing them in human populations. These tests consist of administering drugs…
Environmental Enrichment for Animals: Comparison of Animal Models
February 3, 2016
Researchers, who study the pathophysiology of mood disorders using animal models, do so knowing that there is no way to replicate a mood disorder in an animal…







