A recent paper in Science discussed behavioral data in rats suggestive of empathically motivated behavior. This is a potentially very important report for two major reasons. First, a deep understanding of the mental and psychological abilities of rats, and other species, is a crucial goal for comparative psychologists, evolutionary biologists and other basic scientists. Second, … Continue reading Empathy and Altruism in Rats?
Category: Science News
What Cost Savings? A Closer Look at the Great Ape Protection and Cost Savings Act of 2011
The status and future of chimpanzee research in the US are at the heart of much discussion lately in both scientific and public (also here and here) spheres. A committee convened by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to consider the issue held a number of meetings and is expected to report its findings to the … Continue reading What Cost Savings? A Closer Look at the Great Ape Protection and Cost Savings Act of 2011
Remembering a hero of the struggle against HIV/AIDS
December 1st is World AIDS Day, dedicated to raising awareness of the worldwide AIDS pandemic, to support people living with HIV/AIDS and to commemorate those who died. The disease has claimed over 25 million lives. Worldwide, over 33 million people are now living with HIV/AIDS. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the first report … Continue reading Remembering a hero of the struggle against HIV/AIDS
A Closer Look at the Great Ape Protection Act (GAPA)
The status and future of chimpanzee research in the US are at the heart of much discussion lately in both scientific and public spheres. A committee convened by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to consider the issue held a number of meetings and is expected to report its findings to the NIH by the end … Continue reading A Closer Look at the Great Ape Protection Act (GAPA)
Animal Models of Dystonia – Part II
An invited post by Erwin Montgomery, M.D., and Michele A. Basso, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madison. Based in part on some of the findings of altered learning in rodent models, a primate model of dystonia was developed. This model revealed that repetitive stimulation of fingers not normally stimulated together resulted in dystonic postures of the … Continue reading Animal Models of Dystonia – Part II
Animal Models of Dystonia – Part I
An invited post by Erwin Montgomery, M.D., and Michele A. Basso, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madison. Dystonia is a neurological disorder of movement characterized by sustained muscle contractions affecting one or more sites of the body. Dystonia frequently causes twisting and repetitive movements and abnormal postures resulting in relentless pain. If dystonia affects one part … Continue reading Animal Models of Dystonia – Part I
Animal research unleashes the power of human embryonic stem cells
For more than a decade now embryonic stem cell research has been one of the most high profile – and indeed controversial - areas of medical science, and it is an emerging field that owes a lot to animal studies performed by pioneers like Gail Martin of UCSF. Recently the field has begun to live … Continue reading Animal research unleashes the power of human embryonic stem cells
Predictions and Animal Models of Human Disease
Some animal activists argue human disease cannot be modeled in animals. They think physiological differences between species imply that treatments developed by means of animal research will not translate to humans. Prediction through the development of models is no doubt a goal of scientific work. Predictions are the fruits of theories that can be tested … Continue reading Predictions and Animal Models of Human Disease
Speaking of Research 