Why scientists experiment on mice?
Most of us have watched cartoon Tom and Jerry. The mice have not just been used for entertainment but they have helped us in science also. Mice have a long history in medical research. In fact, they were the first mammalian species specifically domesticated to be used in laboratories. So why has this species been used for lab research? The reason behind this can be grouped into three categories:
1) Commercial reasons: Mice are relatively inexpensive and can be brought in large quantities from commercial producers. The cost of raising mice includes housing, food, time for maturing, reproduction etc. The mice are extremely cheap to be raised due to their small sizes.
2) Administrative reasons: Mice are small, easily housed and maintained, and adaptable to new surroundings. They also reproduce quickly and have a short life span of 2 - 3 years. So, several generations of mice can be observed in a relatively short period of time. These rodents are also generally mild-tempered and docile, making them easy for researchers to handle. The administrative protocols on mice are minimal when compared to other vertebrates.
3) Scientific reasons: Mice are biologically very similar to humans. They can be a good model for humans because of great similarities in the brain structure and functioning. They eat similar food, live around the same places and they even get many similar diseases to humans --- obesity and diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular diseases and neurological diseases just being few of them. Most of the mice used in medical trials are inbred or indigenous such that they are almost identical genetically, producing uniform results.
So, the next time when you are taking some medicine, take a minute to thank mice for it.
