Why Animal Research Matters
Animal research is an indispensable tool for understanding complex living organisms, and many University of Wisconsin–Madison research programs study animals as models of human disease and to explore basic biological processes. The university’s commitment to responsible and ethical research conducted under the attention of skilled veterinarians continues a long history of improving human and animal health and well-being.
News
Human stem cell-derived heart cells are safe in monkeys, could treat congenital heart disease
Regenerating tissue to support healthy heart function could keep hearts beating stronger and longer, and this is where stem cell research is stepping in.
November 13, 2024Brain cell grafts in monkeys jump-start human trial for new Parkinson’s treatment
People with Parkinson’s disease are receiving a new treatment in a clinical trial started after University of Wisconsin–Madison scientists demonstrated the safety and feasibility of the therapeutic delivery method in a study of non-human primates.
July 29, 2024Studying dogs
UW–Madison researchers study animals only when there is no other way to answer important questions about the biology of complex living organisms. While dogs have made up a very small proportion of animals in studies at UW–Madison, that research has addressed important health concerns. Dogs have been vital to UW–Madison studies of cancer treatment and prevention, organ transplants, vaccines and more that have benefited both human and animal patients.
March 18, 2024All creatures great and small: Sequencing the blue whale and Etruscan shrew genomes
Size doesn’t matter when it comes to genome sequencing in the animal kingdom, as a team of researchers at the Morgridge Institute for Research recently illustrated when assembling the sequences for two new reference genomes — one from the world’s largest mammal and one from one of the smallest.
March 18, 2024Alzheimer’s sleep research
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and University of Massachusetts Amherst are collaborating on a study of marmoset monkeys to learn about the role poor sleep plays in dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, debilitating disorders that often result in deadly complications. Learn more here.
March 1, 2024Study identifies promising target for treating inflammatory bowel disease and colitis-induced colorectal cancers
Researchers uncovered a previously unknown function of a protein that is central to gut health and implicated in the development of colitis, a severe and chronic form of IBD.
January 23, 2024- More animal research posts
- More UW News posts
Cell transplant treats Parkinson’s in mice under control of designer drug
A University of Wisconsin–Madison neuroscientist has inserted a genetic switch into nerve cells so a patient can alter their activity by taking designer drugs that would not affect any other cell. The cells in question are neurons and make the neurotransmitter dopamine, whose deficiency is the culprit in the widespread movement disorder Parkinson’s disease.