Longitudinal Studies on Alzheimer Disease Mouse Models with Multiple Tracer PET/CT: Application of Reduction and Refinement Principles in Daily Practice to Safeguard Animal Welfare during Progressive Aging

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Animal models continue to be necessary in many research fields, accompanied by ongoing ethical discussions regarding animal welfare. Therefore, we describe, in detail, our daily practice focused on the improvement of animal welfare (such as handling, enriched environment, study design, and experimental procedures), which results in a weight gain over time that has been shown to be an indicator of well-being. We also describe the reduction in the number of animals needed for our projects, thanks to the establishment of longitudinal studies. ABSTRACT: Longitudinal studies on mouse models related to Alzheimer disease (AD) pathology play an important role in the investigation of therapeutic targets to help pharmaceutical research in the development of new drugs and in the attempt of an early diagnosis that can contribute to improving people’s quality of life. There are several advantages to enriching longitudinal studies in AD models with Positron Emission Tomography (PET); among these advantages, the possibility of following the principle of the 3Rs of animal welfare is fundamental. In this manuscript, good daily experimental practice focusing on animal welfare is described and commented upon, based on the experience attained from studies conducted in our Nuclear Medicine department.