ALAT ALAT Species-Specific Care and Experimental Models Questions and Answers 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Ferrets are commonly used as an animal model for which human infectious disease because they share similar receptor distribution in the respiratory tract?
- HIV/AIDS
- Influenza (Correct answer)
- Tuberculosis
- Malaria
Correct answer: Influenza
Ferrets have sialic acid receptors in the respiratory tract similar to humans, making them an excellent model for influenza virus infection and transmission studies.
Question 2: Which of the following statements about Mongolian gerbils used as laboratory animals is correct?
- They are obligate carnivores requiring high-protein diets
- They are prone to spontaneous epileptiform seizures (Correct answer)
- They require extremely high humidity environments
- They cannot be housed in groups due to aggression
Correct answer: They are prone to spontaneous epileptiform seizures
Approximately 20-40% of Mongolian gerbils develop spontaneous epileptiform seizures, making them a naturally occurring model for epilepsy research.
Question 3: A non-human primate (NHP) is observed self-mutilating and showing stereotypic behaviors. The most appropriate first response is to:
- Increase isolation to prevent injury to other animals
- Notify the veterinary staff and implement environmental enrichment strategies (Correct answer)
- Reduce food allocation to minimize energy for unwanted behaviors
- Transfer the animal to a smaller cage for easier monitoring
Correct answer: Notify the veterinary staff and implement environmental enrichment strategies
Self-mutilation and stereotypies in NHPs typically indicate psychological distress; the veterinary team should be notified and environmental enrichment implemented immediately.
Question 4: The Sprague-Dawley rat is most accurately described as:
- An inbred strain with high genetic uniformity
- An outbred stock commonly used in toxicology and pharmacology studies (Correct answer)
- A transgenic model developed for cancer research
- A hybrid strain created by crossing two inbred lines
Correct answer: An outbred stock commonly used in toxicology and pharmacology studies
Sprague-Dawley is an outbred stock of rat, characterized by genetic diversity, and is widely used in general biomedical, toxicology, and pharmacology research.
Question 5: Which of the following correctly describes why guinea pigs require dietary vitamin C supplementation?
- Guinea pigs have no intestinal flora to synthesize vitamin C
- Guinea pigs lack the enzyme L-gulonolactone oxidase needed to synthesize vitamin C (Correct answer)
- Guinea pigs absorb vitamin C poorly from plant sources
- Guinea pigs excrete vitamin C at an abnormally high rate
Correct answer: Guinea pigs lack the enzyme L-gulonolactone oxidase needed to synthesize vitamin C
Guinea pigs, like humans and some primates, lack L-gulonolactone oxidase and therefore cannot synthesize vitamin C endogenously, requiring dietary supplementation.
Question 6: A minipig model is selected for a dermal toxicology study. What characteristic makes swine skin particularly relevant for this type of research?
- Swine skin is much thicker than human skin, providing better protection
- Swine skin is anatomically and physiologically similar to human skin in thickness and composition (Correct answer)
- Swine have naturally occurring dermatitis that mirrors human conditions
- Swine skin lacks hair follicles, simplifying topical application
Correct answer: Swine skin is anatomically and physiologically similar to human skin in thickness and composition
Pig skin closely resembles human skin in epidermal thickness, dermal composition, and permeability, making it an excellent model for dermal absorption and toxicology studies.
Question 7: When working with zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos used in developmental toxicology studies, which of the following is a key advantage of this model?
- Zebrafish embryos are opaque, protecting them from light-induced stress
- Zebrafish embryos are transparent, allowing direct visualization of organ development (Correct answer)
- Zebrafish have the longest generation time of commonly used laboratory species
- Zebrafish require identical husbandry conditions to mice
Correct answer: Zebrafish embryos are transparent, allowing direct visualization of organ development
Zebrafish embryos are optically transparent, enabling real-time visualization of organ development, cardiac function, and toxicological effects without invasive procedures.
ALAT ALAT Species-Specific Care and Experimental Models Questions and Answers 5
Ferrets are commonly used as an animal model for which human infectious disease because they share similar receptor distribution in the respiratory tract?