Impact of Environmental Enrichment Devices on NTP In Vivo Studies

Churchill, Sheba R; Morgan, Daniel L.; Kissling, Grace E.; Travlos, Gregory S.; King-Herbert, Angela

doi:10.1177/0192623315625330

Cited by 8 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Expected changes in clinical pathology, immune function, and histopathology end points were observed in cyclophosphamide-treated animals, with and without nesting material with changes that were similar between animals with and without nesting material. These results, as well as those of another recent study in mice and rats (Churchill et al 2016), showed that adopting measures to improve animal welfare did not have a meaningful impact on clinical pathology end points in mice and rats.…”

Section: Animal Care and Husbandrysupporting

confidence: 66%

Influence of Study Design Variables on Clinical Pathology Data

Aulbach

Provencher²,

Tripathi

2016

Toxicol Pathol

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A number of factors related to study design have the potential to impact clinical pathology test results during the conduct of nonclinical safety studies. A thorough understanding of these factors is paramount in drawing accurate conclusions from clinical pathology data generated during such studies, particularly when attempting to make the distinction between test article and nontest article-related effects. Study design and conduct variables with potential to impact clinical pathology data discussed in this overview include those related to species and test system, animal age, animal care and husbandry practices, fasting, acclimatization periods, effects of transportation and stressors, route of administration, effects of in-life and surgical procedures, influence of study length, timing of blood collections, impact of vehicle/formulation composition, and some general concepts related to drug class. The material presented here is a summary based on information presented at the 35th Annual Symposium of the Society of Toxicologic Pathology (June 2016), during Symposium Session 2 titled "Deciphering Sources of Variability in Clinical Pathology-It's Not Just about the Numbers."

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Section: Animal Care and Husbandrysupporting

confidence: 66%

Influence of Study Design Variables on Clinical Pathology Data

Aulbach

Provencher²,

Tripathi

2016

Toxicol Pathol

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“…Similarly, no increase in organ weights was detected in C57BL/6JIcoU or BALB/cAnCrRyCpbRivU mice enriched with objects or enriched with nesting material . A more recent study of B6C3F1/N mice further confirmed no significant increase in organ weights (liver, spleen, thymus, adrenal glands, lung, kidneys, and gastrointestinal tract) of either male or female mice when they were provided with nesting material (Crink‐l'Nest TM ) …”

Section: Effects Of Enrichmentmentioning

confidence: 94%

Environmental enrichment and mouse models: Current perspectives

Bayne¹

2018

Anim Models and Exp Med

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The provision of environmental enrichment to numerous species of laboratory animals is generally considered routine husbandry. However, mouse enrichment has proven to be very complex due to the often contradictory outcomes (animal health and welfare, variability in scientific data, etc.) associated with strain, age of the animal when enrichment is provided, gender of the animal, scientific use of the animal, and other housing attributes. While this has led to some suggesting that mice should not be provided enrichment, more recently opinion is trending toward acknowledging that enrichment actually normalizes the animal and data obtained from a mouse living in a barren environment are likely not to be representative or even reliable. This article offers an overview of the types of impact enrichment can have on various strains of mice and demonstrates that enrichment not only has a role in mouse husbandry, but also can lead to new areas of scientific enquiry in a number of different fields. K E Y W O R D Sanimal welfare, environmental enrichment, mouse behavior, research validity | INTRODUCTIONThe laboratory mouse is a ubiquitously used research subject whose genetics, anatomy, physiology, immunology, and behavior have been studied in detail for generations. Thus, it would seem that providing a housing environment that is species-appropriate would be a simple matter. However, it would be a serious mistake to approach mouse enrichment as a one-size-fits-all husbandry procedure. The laboratory mouse is still considered behaviorally similar to wild mice in many dimensions 1(p150) , though it differs somewhat from the wildtype ancestor in its behavior, with running behavior and open-field freezing behavior, and a general higher level of activity more evident in wild-type mice than the laboratory bred animals.2 Over decades of purposeful breeding, a variety of characteristics (eg, ease of handling) were either deliberately or inadvertently introduced into the behavior profile of the laboratory mouse. Today, the increasing trend in the use of transgenic mice has only amplified the diversity of traits being bred for, and thus, the potential exists for both extant and subtle differences in mouse behavior and their response to their environment.The behavioral breadth of the species may help to account for the fact that the literature is replete with contradictory findings and diverse conclusions about the potential benefits and unexpected consequences from providing enrichment to laboratory mice.Indeed, an argument has been made that enriched animals produce different results; enrichment may increase between-subject variability; and enrichment may reduce replicability across laboratories. 3(p47-48) A simple response to these arguments could be that animals should not be provided enrichment. But, a counter-argument has been made that, as expected, the enriched animal model is different in many ways from the animal model living in a barren environment. 3(p47) Indeed, it is not logical to accept the notion that --

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“…Indeed, the environmental enrichment literature has been criticised for inconsistent usage of terms and lack of precise definitions (e.g., [ 36 , 37 ]). Some studies (all from roughly the last decade) refer to the addition of nesting material (to an otherwise barren cage) as enriched (e.g., [ 23 , 38 , 39 ]), although in other studies a cage with nesting material is sometimes used as a condition representing no enrichment (e.g., [ 40 , 41 ]). Other studies refer to cages containing nesting material in addition to other components as their conventional or non-enriched condition (e.g., [ 42 , 43 ]), and many studies do not describe their conventional housing conditions at all [ 21 ], making direct comparisons between studies difficult.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

Ratuski

Weary

2022

Animals

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Environmental enrichment has been widely studied in rodents, but there is no consensus on what enrichment should look like or what it should achieve. Inconsistent use of the term “enrichment” creates challenges in drawing conclusions about the quality of an environment, which may slow housing improvements for laboratory animals. Many review articles have addressed environmental enrichment for laboratory rats and mice (Rattus norvegicus and Mus musculus). We conducted a metareview of 29 review articles to assess how enrichment has been defined and what are commonly described as its goals or requirements. Recommendations from each article were summarised to illustrate the conditions generally considered suitable for laboratory rodents. While there is no consensus on alternative terminology, many articles acknowledged that the blanket use of the terms “enriched” and “enrichment” should be avoided. Environmental enrichment was most often conceptualised as a method to increase natural behaviour and improve animal welfare. Authors also commonly outlined perceived risks and requirements of environmental enrichment. We discuss these perceptions, make suggestions for future research, and advocate for the adoption of more specific and value-neutral terminology.

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Impact of Environmental Enrichment Devices on NTP In Vivo Studies

Cited by 8 publications

References 40 publications

Influence of Study Design Variables on Clinical Pathology Data

Influence of Study Design Variables on Clinical Pathology Data

Environmental enrichment and mouse models: Current perspectives

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

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