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Animal Models of Exercise From Rodents to Pythons
Margaret H Hastings1, Jonathan J Herrera2, J Sawalla Guseh1
1Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Cardiovascular Research Center, Corrigan Minehan Heart Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston (M.H.H., J.S.G., B.A., N.E.H., A.A.K., H.L., C.S., A.P.S., J.D.R., A.R.).
This review explores animal models for studying exercise and cardiovascular health. It covers acute and chronic exercise testing in rodents and discusses potential models like Burmese python feeding for understanding physiological adaptations.
Area of Science:
- Physiology
- Exercise Science
- Cardiovascular Research
Background:
- Exercise confers well-established cardiovascular benefits.
- Molecular pathways activated by exercise can be mimicked to achieve some of these benefits.
- Animal models are crucial for studying exercise's impact on cardiovascular function.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review methods for assessing cardiovascular function during acute exercise challenges in rodents.
- To discuss practical and conceptual considerations for using rodent exercise conditioning models.
- To explore alternative models, such as Burmese python feeding, for studying exercise-like adaptations.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on rodent models for acute exercise testing.
- Analysis of common rodent models for chronic exercise conditioning.
- Exploration of physiological adaptation models, including feeding in Burmese pythons.
Main Results:
- Acute exercise testing aids in evaluating cardiovascular responses to manipulations.
- Chronic exercise models reveal cardiac phenotypic changes and identify therapeutic pathways.
- Alternative models may offer novel insights into exercise-mimicking adaptations.
Conclusions:
- Rodent models are valuable for understanding cardiovascular responses to acute and chronic exercise.
- Further research into novel models can uncover new therapeutic strategies for cardiovascular health.
- Comparative physiology offers unique perspectives on exercise-induced adaptations.
