Why should we use non-mammalian models for in vivo practical education?

Aidan Seeley, Swansea Worm Integrative Research Laboratory, Swansea University

Laura Corns, School of Biosciences, University of Sheffield

James Rouse, School of Biology, University of Leeds and Applied Insect Science, Ripon

Nicholas Freestone, School of Life Sciences, Pharmacy and Chemistry, Kingston University London

In vivo learning has unique benefits for undergraduates, but a decline in the study of animal models at universities has resulted in a skills shortage among UK students. What teaching strategies can be adopted to train the next generation of life science researchers?

In July, academics came together to deliberate this point at our meeting Physiology 2023. The chair Dr Nick Freestone and the panellists Dr Laura Corns, Dr James Rouse, and Dr Aidan Seeley who led the session ‘Applying the 3Rs to Education: Switching from Rodents to Invertebrates’ discussed how we can create new inspirational educational experiences around the use of animal models. They share with us why and how invertebrate and non-mammalian alternatives can improve in vivo practical education.

The current landscape of in vivo education

The number of animals used for education and training in the United Kingdom has declined 85.2% from 5,771 in 2001¹ to 857 in 2022² (Figure 1). While learned societies have highlighted the importance of continued in vivo skills training in education^3,4, institutions are increasingly moving away from in vivo use^5–7 for a number of ethical, financial and practical  reasons; this has resulted in an in vivo skills gap^8,9. Alternative routes for in vivo training of students are essential to ensure graduates have an appropriate grasp of how to choose and use model organisms which enhance our understanding and enable the development of new medicines and therapeutics. In this context the Declaration of Bologna (1999) states that “humane science is a prerequisite for good science and is best achieved in relation to laboratory animal procedures by the vigorous promotion and application of the Three Rs (Replacement, Reduction and Refinement)”.

Addressing the in vivo skills gap

Our Training Hub session, ‘Applying the 3Rs to Education: Switching from Rodents to Invertebrates’, addressed this in vivo skills gap with the aim to share good practice in the use of invertebrate and non-mammalian vertebrates in practical education. We explored and discussed how educators can use new educational experiences that involve non-traditional species in physiology and education to decrease the reliance on historically used animals across all biosciences.

Three model organisms to update your physiology and pharmacology education

First up, we have the zebrafish Dario rerio (Figure 2A), which although a vertebrate, zebrafish do not require a licence until five days post-fertilisation. Dr Laura Corns highlighted that zebrafish can be a useful model organism to teach in vivo physiology and pharmacology, in addition to their role in teaching developmental biology. This is because the transparency of the zebrafish embryos allow students to visualise a beating heart without dissection or animal distress. Educators can also create practical projects where students explore the effects of temperature or drug exposure on the heart rate of the embryos using light microscopy.

Next, we have the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster (Figure 2B) which is ideal to study locomotor and learning deficits in neurodegeneration via negative geotaxis and proboscis extension responses. Dr James Rouse explained how students can observe the effects gene mutations have on Drosophila, helping them to draw direct links between mutations and pathophysiological mechanisms of disease. This supports the molecular techniques students are taught, such as PCR, that enable students to visualise mutations.

To deliver practical classes on behavioural pharmacology, Dr Aidan Seeley presented the blackworm, Lumbriculus variegatus, (Figure 2C) as you can measure the response of these worms to stimulated or unstimulated movement before, during and after drug exposure¹⁰. Classes can be set up with ease, using common laboratory equipment and, as with all invertebrates, this organism is exempt from the Animal (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, removing boundaries which are often inhibitory to in vivo education and training.

What do the students think?

Student feedback from these teaching techniques demonstrated that students actively enjoyed in vivo classes and it promoted their understanding of the course content and the use of animals in biomedical research.  A few comments reported by students, include that they “found the links easier to follow between genes and disease” and, “the use of animals in research is too beneficial to be ignored”. In vivo practical classes were described as “fun, engaging and gave me an insight into more real-life research which is really interesting”, and “great to get some hands-on experience with regards to in vivo research. This will come in very useful when applying for Masters/PhD”.

The feedback highlights student engagement and enjoyment of in vivo practical classes during their course, while stimulating further discussion on the use of animals within research. These practical classes seek to address the in vivo skills gap to ensure educators produce highly employable and qualified graduates who can continue to contribute to the development of new medicines and therapeutics.

Training the next generation of life science researchers

Following on from this session, we are working on curating resources for other educators to use within their own institutions. With collaboration across the sector, we can work to ensure that students continue to have valuable in vivo skills as a routine part of their undergraduate programmes.

If you wish to be involved in this initiative or would like additional information on any of the resources described here, please email the Membership Programmes team at The Physiological Society at traininghub@physoc.org.

You can discover more educational resources on our Training Hub.

References

1. Statistics of Scientific Procedures on Living Animals Great Britain 2001. GOV.UK. Accessed December 27, 2021. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/statistics-of-scientific-procedures-on-living-animals-great-britain-2001
2. Statistics of scientific procedures on living animals, Great Britain: 2022. GOV.UK. Accessed October 18, 2023. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/statistics-of-scientific-procedures-on-living-animals-great-britain-2022
3. British Pharmacological Society. Undergraduate Pharmacology Core Curriculum. Published online 2016. Accessed May 29, 2020. https://www.bps.ac.uk/education-engagement/teaching-pharmacology/undergraduate-curriculum
4. British Pharmacological Society. Curriculum for the use of research animals. Published online 2019. Accessed May 29, 2020. https://www.bps.ac.uk/education-engagement/research-animals/curriculum-for-the-use-of-research-animals
5. British Pharmacological Society. A survey of integrative physiology/pharmacology teaching undertaken by the BPS and the Physiological Society. PA2 Online. 2004;3:10-11.
6. British Pharmacological Society and the Physiological Society. Tackling the need to teach integrative pharmacology and physiology: problems and ways forward. Trends Pharmacol Sci. 2006;27(3):130-133. doi:10.1016/j.tips.2006.01.002
7. Sideris M, Nicolaides M, Jagiello J, et al. In vivo Simulation-Based Learning for Undergraduate Medical Students: Teaching and Assessment. Adv Med Educ Pract. 2021;Volume 12:995-1002. doi:10.2147/AMEP.S272185
8. The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry. Bridging the Skills Gap in the Biopharmaceutical Industry.; 2015. https://www.abpi.org.uk/publications/bridging-the-skills-gap-in-the-biopharmaceutical-industry/
9. The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry. Bridging the Skills Gap in the Biopharmaceutical Industry.; 2018. https://www.abpi.org.uk/publications/bridging-the-skills-gap-in-the-biopharmaceutical-industry-2019/
10. Seeley A, Bellamy C, Davies NA, Wallace MJ. Lumbriculus variegatus: A novel organism for in vivo pharmacology education. Pharmacology Research & Perspectives. 2021;9(5):e00853. doi:10.1002/prp2.85