Zebrafish
Zebrafish, sharing 70% of human genetics and having externally fertilized transparent embryos, serve as invaluable models for studying gene function and genetic diseases like Duchenne muscular dystrophy, aiding in drug development.
Horse
Horse research under the One Health initiative advances both equine and human health. Studies on horse diseases, obesity, aging, genetics, and regenerative medicine inform treatments benefiting both species.
Hamster
Hamsters play a crucial role in various research areas like cancer, reproduction, virology, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases due to their physiological similarities to humans, particularly in lipid metabolism and atherogenesis.
Rabbit
Rabbits, instrumental in developing the rabies vaccine, paved the way for pets in households. Their anatomical and physiological resemblance to humans aids research in cancer, glaucoma, infections, diabetes, and emphysema.
Chicken
Ovarian cancer, affecting 225,000 women annually, is often diagnosed late, leading to high fatality rates. The chicken, mirroring human ovarian cancer, provides a crucial model for early detection research, potentially saving lives.
Rhesus macaque
Rhesus macaque monkeys, owing to their anatomical and physiological likeness to humans, have been instrumental in developing life-saving vaccines and treatments like those for polio, smallpox, rabies, and HIV/AIDS. They've also contributed to behavioral discoveries, showing promise in neural mechanism studies.
Dog
Dogs, while less commonly used in research, play a vital role in cancer and spinal cord injuries due to similarities with humans. They are also crucial in drug safety studies, benefiting both human and canine health.
Fruit Fly
Fruit flies have helped to develop drugs designed to treat a range of diseases from skin infections and genetic disorders to pneumonia, and meningitis. Some of the recent research with fruit flies has focused on understanding Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, spastic paraplegia, cancer, obesity and insomnia.
Marmoset
The common marmoset, due to its size and similarities with humans, is crucial in safety, reproductive biology, neuroscience, and drug development studies. In multiple sclerosis research, its immunological likeness aids therapy development.
Guinea Pig
Guinea pigs, resembling humans in bacterial infection symptoms and immune response, have aided research for over 200 years, advancing treatments for lung, ear, eye, artery, stomach, intestine diseases, including tuberculosis.