top | item 47083230

(no title)

strken | 10 days ago

I'm not sure why the snark is necessary. Nobody is suggesting that mice are a terrible animal model or trying to tell researchers how to do their jobs, they're just frustrated by pop science coverage that leaves crucial information out of the headline and over-hypes early research. At least the BBC article doesn't bury the lede.

discuss

order

russdill|10 days ago

I don't think the problem is specifically mice, but disease models. Some of the hardest diseases to study mice don't naturally (or commonly) get so it has to be induced in some way.

inglor_cz|9 days ago

Yes, for example, ALS. Mice don't naturally get ALS and while a somewhat similar condition can be provoked in them, the model does not fit well and seems to be almost useless for producing actual human treatments of ALS.