Invertebrate animal models of diseases as screening tools in drug discovery.
Invertebrate animal models (mainly the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans and the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster) are gaining momentum as screening tools in drug discovery. These organisms combine genetic amenability, low cost, and culture conditions compatible with large-scale screens. Their main advantage is to allow high-throughput screening in a physiological context. On the down side, protein divergence between invertebrates and humans causes a high rate of false negatives. Despite important limitations, invertebrate models are an imperfect yet much needed tool to bridge the gap between traditional in vitro and preclinical animal assays.
Ségalat
Laurent
L
Centre de Génétique Moléculaire et Cellulaire, UMR 5534, Université Lyon 1, 69622 Villeurbanne, France. segalat@cgmc.univ-lyon1.fr
D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster; D015195:Drug Design; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; D023421:Models, Animal; D009135:Muscular Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy; D019636:Neurodegenerative Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations / Q000302:isolation & purification*
D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations