title: Unconventional organisms as models in biological research.
abstract: The use of unconventional organisms in experimental research is a timely subject that impacts upon current science policy in the areas of animal welfare, biodiversity, and biotechnology. Many recent reports have recommended a reduction in the use of mammals in biomedical research to promote animal welfare by utilizing alternative methods and unconventional model organisms. Currently we lack adequate models for all the biological phenomena worthy of study. Biologists must continue to take advantage of the functional biodiversity of organisms not only to identify new model organisms for studying more optimally those life processes we know something about, but also to discover entirely new biological principles, processes, and products. Increased emphasis on the need to preserve the diversity of life also requires more knowledge of the comparative biology of processes such as reproduction, growth, defense mechanisms, and nutrition. The functional biodiversity of life can be exploited not only for fundamentally new biological insights, but also for expanding the knowledge base needed for commercial biotechnology. There is a critical need of commercial biotechnology for basic functional information on more species, especially microorganisms and plants. The knowledge of biodiversity will mean little to most of mankind unless the motivation exists to use it for commercial benefit.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cellular Biosciences, National Science Foundation, Washington, D.C. 20550.
authors.forename: B L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Umminger
mesh_terms: D000827:Animal Welfare; D000818:Animals; D000830:Animals, Laboratory; D001695:Biology; D001709:Biotechnology; D008954:Models, Biological