Environmental Enrichment for Rats and Mice Housed in Laboratories: A Metareview

Ratuski, Anna S.; Weary, Daniel M.

doi:10.3390/ani12040414

Cited by 31 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 155 publications

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“…A more specific environmental factor we found to be broadly included in heterogenized designs is cage enrichment (24,25,29,(45)(46)(47). As there are multiple definitions used to describe environmental enrichment (82), it is unclear whether all studies referred to specific types of enrichment in their recommendations for heterogenization. Among the most frequent formats of enrichment, some are related to factors that were listed separately in Table 1, such as group housing and cage size, and others include nesting material and shelter/nest boxes (82).…”

Section: Sources Of Variabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As there are multiple definitions used to describe environmental enrichment (82), it is unclear whether all studies referred to specific types of enrichment in their recommendations for heterogenization. Among the most frequent formats of enrichment, some are related to factors that were listed separately in Table 1, such as group housing and cage size, and others include nesting material and shelter/nest boxes (82). Because of the relevance of cage enrichment to ethical considerations (in this case, refinement of animal experimentation), legal requirements will vary in different places (83).…”

Section: Sources Of Variabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mapping strategies towards improved external validity in preclinical translational research

Carneiro¹,

Drude²,

Hülsemann³

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Introduction: Translation is about successfully bringing findings from preclinical contexts into the clinic. This transfer is challenging as clinical trials frequently fail despite positive preclinical results. Limited robustness of preclinical research has been marked as one of the drivers of such failures. One suggested solution is to improve the external validity of in vitro and in vivo experiments via a suite of complementary strategies.Areas covered: In this review, we summarize the literature available on different strategies to improve external validity: systematic heterogenization, generalizability tests, multi-batch and multicenter experiments.Expert opinion: The reviewed strategies differentially influence variation in experiments. We argue that applying a combination of these approaches in confirmatory stages of preclinical research putatively increases the chances of success in clinical studies.

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Section: Sources Of Variabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Sources Of Variabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping strategies towards improved external validity in preclinical translational research

Carneiro¹,

Drude²,

Hülsemann³

et al. 2023

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Moreover, species-specific recommendations for rats and mice call for the provision of environmental enrichment to make laboratory animal housing more diverse (e.g., https://www.nc3rs.org.uk/3rs-resources/housing-and-husbandry-mouse ). However, the type of housing referred to as “enriched environment” has changed significantly in the last decades ( 3 , 4 ). For example, some of what was described as enriched animal husbandry 25 years ago nowadays just meets the basic recommendations [i.e., a cardboard tube ( 5 , 6 )].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bored at home?—A systematic review on the effect of environmental enrichment on the welfare of laboratory rats and mice

et al. 2022

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Boredom is an emotional state that occurs when an individual has nothing to do, is not interested in the surrounding, and feels dreary and in a monotony. While this condition is usually defined for humans, it may very well describe the lives of many laboratory animals housed in small, barren cages. To make the cages less monotonous, environmental enrichment is often proposed. Although housing in a stimulating environment is still used predominantly as a luxury good and for treatment in preclinical research, enrichment is increasingly recognized to improve animal welfare. To gain insight into how stimulating environments influence the welfare of laboratory rodents, we conducted a systematic review of studies that analyzed the effect of enriched environment on behavioral parameters of animal well–being. Remarkably, a considerable number of these parameters can be associated with symptoms of boredom. Our findings show that a stimulating living environment is essential for the development of natural behavior and animal welfare of laboratory rats and mice alike, regardless of age and sex. Conversely, confinement and under-stimulation has potentially detrimental effects on the mental and physical health of laboratory rodents. We show that boredom in experimental animals is measurable and does not have to be accepted as inevitable.

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“…In standard experiments, animals are housed in conventional laboratory rodent cages with access to only basic food and water. The standard cages are too small and are thought to cause sensorimotor deprivation [6][7][8][9].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental enrichment enhances learning and memory after traumatic brain injury

Siqiu

Sun

et al. 2022

Preprint

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We investigated the therapeutic effect of environmental enrichment (EE) on traumatic brain injury (TBI). Sixty 8-week-old SD rats were divided into four groups: sham-operated (sham group), sham + EE standard environment (STD), TBI group, and TBI + EE. Sham + EE and TBI + EE groups recovered in environmental enrichment areas after surgery, whereas the Sham and TBI groups recovered in STD. Modeling repeatability was assessed using acute neurology. The effect of EE on the differentiation of neural cells in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus was analyzed using immunofluorescence, whereas the cognitive learning ability of rats was analyzed using the Morris water maze test. Brain damage based on cortical lesions was assessed using HE. The expression levels of vascular endothelial growth factor VEGF, three nerve growth factors, and three inflammatory factors in brain cortical tissue were analyzed using western blot. Fluorescence staining revealed that EE exerted its effect by promoting the proliferation of neuronal cells in the dentate gyrus of the rat hippocampus. The Morris water maze experiment showed that EE + TBI improved the cognitive function, learning, and memory of rats after brain injury. At 19 d, the cortical damage area of rats in the EE + TBI group had significantly reduced. Also, EE improved the cognitive function and long-term memory of rats. EE treatment further significantly increased NGF expression, neurotrophins-3, VEGF, BDNF, and IL-10 in the cerebral cortex after TBI. Also, EE significantly improved the nerve recovery and vascular structure in rats. IL-1β and TNF-α expression were lower in the EE + TBI group than in the EE group. In general, EE treatment can accelerate brain injury repair through revascularization, promotes the growth of residual neuronal axons, and improve neuroinflammation.

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Environmental Enrichment for Rats and Mice Housed in Laboratories: A Metareview

Cited by 31 publications

References 155 publications

Mapping strategies towards improved external validity in preclinical translational research

Mapping strategies towards improved external validity in preclinical translational research

Bored at home?—A systematic review on the effect of environmental enrichment on the welfare of laboratory rats and mice

Environmental enrichment enhances learning and memory after traumatic brain injury

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