Rats (Rattus Norvegicus)

Laboratory rats or lab rats are strains of the rat subspecies Rattus norvegicus domestica which are bred and kept for scientific research. While less commonly used for research than laboratory mice, rats have served as an important animal model for research in psychology and biomedical science.

Strains used in Longevity Research

Strain	Characteristics	Typical Lifespan	Prone Diseases	Notable Research Findings	Relevance to Longevity Research
Wistar	General-purpose strain, albino coat	2-3 years	Kidney diseases, tumors	Extensively studied in toxicology and pharmacology	Commonly used in aging studies due to well-documented lifespan
Sprague Dawley	Outbred, albino, large size	2-2.5 years	Heart disease, diabetes	Often used in cancer research	Popular for age-related disease studies
Brown Norway	Inbred, brown coat, long lifespan	3-3.5 years	Less prone to cancer, but susceptible to respiratory disease	Studies have shown exceptional aging characteristics	Known for its exceptionally long lifespan, useful for studying aging processes
Fischer 344	Inbred, albino, prone to certain age-related diseases	2-2.5 years	High incidence of leukemia, immune system decline	Common model for immunosenescence studies	Frequently used in gerontology for studying age-related pathologies
Long-Evans	Outbred, hooded coat, good healthspan	2-3 years	Obesity, neurological disorders	Used in behavioral and obesity research	Utilized in research focusing on the quality of life and health in old age
SHR (Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat)	Inbred, used in cardiovascular research	1.5-2 years	Cardiovascular diseases, stroke	Key model in hypertension and stroke research	Valuable for studying the interplay between hypertension and aging

See Also

• Wikipedia - Laboratory rat