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Volume 53 Issue 3, March 2024

Reporting metadata in animal research

Data sharing allows data to be reused in other analyses, avoiding resources (and animals) being wasted in unnecessary replication studies. A new Perspective proposes a minimal metadata set to enable data sharing and repurposing in animal research, contributing to the principle of reduction.

See Moresis et al.

Cover image: Debbie Maizels. Cover design: Debbie Maizels.

Volume 53 Issue 3

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  • A strategic and statistically based experimental design is a key component of Reduction, and the backbone of reproducible research. Design basics consist of formal structuring of input variables and clearly defined experimental units. Formal designs can evaluate two or more input factors simultaneously, identify and prioritise the most important inputs, and identify interactions where most discovery occurs.

    • Penny Reynolds
    Comment

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Q&A

  • In a 2023 Protocol Review, US respondents addressed a scenario1 wherein genetically modified animals (GMAs) were donated to an investigator and used for an unrelated study. In the US, the production and subsequent management of GMAs are governed by specific regulations (PHS Policy, NIH Guidelines), and GMAs that are not used for the intended research would not qualify for other research activities. To better understand how GMAs are governed in institutions located outside of the US, we asked two experts – Sara Wells (UK) and Francina Langa Vives (France) – about their experience.

    • Lauren Danridge
    Q&A
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Research Highlights

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Perspectives

  • Biomedical research is experiencing a data explosion, but this does not guarantee building upon knowledge gained from previous experiments. Without appropriate metadata, data can be wasted, especially in animal research. A minimal metadata set is proposed to enable data repurposing, aligning with ARRIVE 2.0 guidelines and making in vivo data FAIR-compliant.

    • Anastasios Moresis
    • Leonardo Restivo
    • Alexandra Bannach-Brown
    Perspective Open Access
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