Naked Mole Rat

Naked mole rats are mouse-sized rodents that have become an important animal model in biomedical research. They play a unique mammalian role in behavioral and ecophysiological research of life underground. This chapter studies the general physiology, anatomy of organ systems, husbandry, and uses in research of the naked mole rats. Naked mole rats belong to the order Rodentia in that they have two incisor teeth on the upper and lower arcade that continuously grow. The skin is loose, wrinkled, and brownish pink in color. The body is for the most part absent of hairs with the exception of tactile hairs that are regularly arranged throughout the body and which are particularly prominent around the face and to a lesser extent on the tail. They are typically housed at 28–30°C, and at 50–60% relative humidity. Because naked mole rats are social and have cooperative behaviors, the study of their conduct has more applicability to people. The chapter describes the models of experimental research on the naked mole rat such as the model of reproductive suppression, model of somatosensory processing, model of bone elongation, and model of aging.