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Rodents have also thrived in human-created environments such as agricultural and urban areas. [22] Some rodents, like this North American beaver with its dam of gnawed tree trunks and the lake it has created, are considered ecosystem engineers. Though some species are common pests for humans, rodents also play important ecological roles. [2]
Rodents such as rats are the most common model in researching effects of cardiovascular disease, as the effects on rodents mimic those in humans. [12] Rats have also been used as tools in research to try to find if there is a difference in the effects of cocaine on adults versus adolescents. [13]
In many cases, working rats are domesticated brown rats. However, other species, notably the Gambian pouched rat , have also been trained to assist humans. Domesticated brown rats as working animals
The term rat is also used in the names of other small mammals that are not true rats. Examples include the North American pack rats (aka wood rats [3]) and a number of species loosely called kangaroo rats. [3] Rats such as the bandicoot rat (Bandicota bengalensis) are murine rodents related to true rats but are not members of the genus Rattus ...
In the U.S., the numbers of rats and mice used is estimated to be from 11 million [94] to between 20 and 100 million a year. [95] Other rodents commonly used are guinea pigs, hamsters, and gerbils. Mice are the most commonly used vertebrate species because of their size, low cost, ease of handling, and fast reproduction rate.
Mice differ from humans in several immune properties: mice are more resistant to some toxins than humans; have a lower total neutrophil fraction in the blood, a lower neutrophil enzymatic capacity, lower activity of the complement system, and a different set of pentraxins involved in the inflammatory process; and lack genes for important ...
[34] [35] Millions of mammals, especially mice and rats, are used in experiments each year. [36] Knockout mice are used to help discover the functions of genes. [37] [38] Basic biological research has been done with plants.
Rodentology is a branch of mammalogy for the study of rodents by a rodentologist. [1] The scientific group of rodents would include, but is not limited to, mice, rats, squirrels, etc. From the perspective of zoology , it investigates the behaviour, biology and classification of various rodent species.