Animal Models of Diverticulosis: Review and Recommendations

Diverticulosis is a structural alteration of the colon tissue characterized by the development of pouch-like structures called diverticula. It afflicts a significant portion of the population in Western countries, with a higher prevalence among the elderly. Diverticulosis is believed to be the result of a synergetic interaction between inherent tissue weakness, diet, colonic microstructure, motility, and genetic factors. A validated etiology has, however, not yet been established. Non-surgical treatment is currently lacking due to this poor understanding, and surgical colon resection is the only long-term solution following recurrent complications. With rising prevalence, the burden of diverticulosis on patients and hospital resources has increased over the past several years. More efficient and less invasive treatment approaches are, thus, urgently needed. Animal models of diverticulosis are crucial to enable a preclinical assessment and evaluation of such novel approaches. This review discusses the animal models of diverticulosis that have been proposed to date. The current models require either a significant amount of time to develop diverticulosis, present a relatively low success rate, or seriously deteriorate the animals' systemic health. Recommendations are thus provided to address these pitfalls through the selection of a suitable animal and the combination of multiple risk factors for diverticulosis.