Rat Model News and Research

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Muscles retain molecular memory of repeated inactivity

Muscle loss, or atrophy, due to inactivity is common after illness, injury, hospitalization or falls, and becomes increasingly frequent with aging.

25 Feb 2026

Onset of "the munchies" after cannabis use could offer clues to help people with appetite loss

The urgent onset of "the munchies" after cannabis use isn't imaginary – it's a cognitive response that occurs regardless of sex, age, weight or recent food consumption and could offer clues to help people struggling with appetite loss.

19 Feb 2026

Synergistic drug pair shows promise for spinal cord injury recovery

Spinal cord injury remains one of the most challenging neurological conditions to treat, largely because damage continues to worsen long after the initial trauma.

16 Feb 2026

Aging alters social preferences through distinct brain mechanisms

The loss of social connectedness as people age increases the odds of cognitive-related disorders and can worsen health outcomes in older populations. But is there a direct relationship between social behavior and cognition? Subhadeep Dutta Gupta, Peter Rapp, and colleagues, from the National Institute on Aging, developed a rat model to probe social cognition in the aging brain.

2 Feb 2026

Soft wireless bioelectronic implant targets the splenic nerve to reduce inflammation

For millions suffering from chronic inflammatory diseases like inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), managing flare-ups often involves powerful drugs with significant side effects.

1 Jan 2026

Hydrogel-based treatment achieves innervation and pulp-dentin regeneration

The dental pulp is susceptible to microbial infection, which often results in inflammation, necrosis, and defects in the pulp-dentin complex. Traditional treatment strategies suffer from multiple limitations and do not promote neural regeneration.

16 Dec 2025

Texture-based analysis of OCT images reveals early retinal changes in diabetes

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a leading cause of blindness among working-age adults, affecting more than 130 million people worldwide.

27 Nov 2025

Preclinical evidence supports sotagliflozin's superior efficacy in attenuating salt-induced kidney damage

Sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors, initially developed to treat type 2 diabetes, have significant heart- and kidney- protective effects. In the kidney, SGLT2 reabsorbs approximately 97% offiltered glucose in the S1 and S2 segments of the proximal tubule, while SGLT1reabsorbs the remainder in the S3 segment.

8 Nov 2025

Flexible drug-delivery patch can promote tissue healing after a heart attack

MIT engineers have developed a flexible drug-delivery patch that can be placed on the heart after a heart attack to help promote healing and regeneration of cardiac tissue.

4 Nov 2025

Antihypertensive and lipid-lowering drugs show efficacy against steatotic liver disease

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease is the most common liver disease in the world, affecting about one third of the adult population. This disorder is characterized by the accumulation of fat in liver cells, which has severe liver consequences and is also associated with a high mortality rate from cardiovascular disease.

6 Oct 2025

Imaging breakthrough shows how spinal cord injuries affect the whole central nervous system

A new PET tracer can provide insights into how spinal cord injuries affect not only the spinal cord, but also the brain, according to new research published in The Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

13 Sep 2025

Experts review the evidence on coenzyme Q10 and cognitive decline

Researchers reviewed evidence on coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) and cognition, finding strong biological support and positive results in animal models but mixed outcomes in human trials. Larger, high-quality studies are needed to clarify whether CoQ10 can protect against cognitive decline and neurodegenerative diseases.

9 Sep 2025

New insights into bone remodeling process in orthodontic tooth movement under hypoxia

Sustained hypoxia affects orthodontic tooth movement (OTM) by altering osteoclast and osteoblast differentiation, report researchers from Institute of Science Tokyo, Japan.

25 Aug 2025

Researchers investigate how citrus bioflavonoid naringin could reduce inflammation and heart risk

Researchers reviewed 62 studies on naringin, a citrus flavonoid, and found strong preclinical evidence for its cardioprotective effects, including improved endothelial function, reduced oxidative stress, and protection against myocardial injury.

18 Aug 2025

New insights into how keto diet can restore cognitive function following status epilepticus

Epilepsy affects over 70 million people worldwide, and a significant portion of patients suffer from drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE), where standard medications fail.

11 Aug 2025

Lauric acid could be a key cancer-fighting compound in coconut oil

Virgin coconut oil and lauric acid show promise in inhibiting cancer cell growth and mitigating chemotherapy toxicity, paving the way for future therapies.

11 Aug 2025

New swallowable sensor pill reveals gut inflammation with a simple color change

Researchers have developed an ingestible biosensor pill (PRIM) that detects intestinal inflammation by releasing a blue dye in response to elevated reactive oxygen species, providing a simple, at-home visual indicator.

27 Jul 2025

Myeloid cells play central role in immune response after polytrauma

Gaining insights into the complex pathways and key cell populations involved in immune dysregulation can aid the development of therapeutic approaches to treat polytrauma, which is associated with poor patient outcomes.

21 Jul 2025

Nigerian botanicals restore hormonal balance and fight menstrual pain in preclinical study

Researchers tested five Nigerian medicinal plants in female rats and found that these botanicals reversed MSG-induced hormonal imbalance, oxidative stress, and lipid disruptions linked to dysmenorrhea. The findings support further investigation of plant-based therapies for menstrual pain and related metabolic risks.

20 Jul 2025

More than 200 types of misfolded proteins could be associated with age-related cognitive decline

For decades, the story of Alzheimer's research has been dominated by a battle between A-beta and tau amyloids, both of which can kill neurons and impact the brain's ability to function.

11 Jul 2025