The website of the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) has launched an 'Animal Model Search Engine for Research' as part of its commitment to transparency in animal experimentation, an initiative promoted by the Confederation of Scientific Societies of Spain (COSCE). This new tool will reduce the time spent searching for animal models, avoid duplications and generate collaborations and synergies between researchers, which will contribute to the advancement of quality scientific research under the principles of the 3Rs in the use of animal models (refine, reduce, replace).

The active collaboration of our researchers has been essential to collect the information. The search engine allows us to navigate a catalogue that currently includes 141 biomodels and that will be updated regularly. Users can find a specific model based on four different criteria: the name of a pathology, the therapeutic area, the animal species or the name of the model.

Within the current catalogue, the Fabry disease model, the GNB1 encephalopathy model, the multiple myeloma model and the spina bifida model stand out due to the need for biomodels for research into rare diseases. The oncological models also stand out (37%), with a significant contribution from patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models, which together with the cardiology models (14%) constitute the most numerous models in our catalogue. The Alzheimer's and migraine models are also noteworthy.

This work has been carried out thanks to funding from the Carlos III Health Institute to the ISCIII Platforms for Support to R&D&I Research in Biomedicine and Health Sciences (PT20/00107).

VHIR animal models classified by therapeutic area

*Institutional Statement on the Use of Research Animals