Animal models

Recent articles

Illustrated collage of a monkey profile, a gloved hand holding a vaccine syringe touching an outline of the United States with two primates sitting near it, a strand of DNA, and flags of the United States and China in the background.

U.S. national primate research centers face an uncertain future

The facilities were meant to last 100 years. Four decades shy of that mark, amid flatlined funds and mounting political pressure, their directors are trying to find a path forward.

By Calli McMurray
9 October 2026 | 12 min read
Reflections of primates in lab equipment (bottom left: Rhesus macaque, top left: Pig-tailed macaque, bottom right: Crab-eating macaque. top right: Marmoset

What if nonhuman primate research goes away?

As the U.S. government takes steps to stop using nonhuman primates in research, The Transmitter investigates what that shift could mean for neuroscience.

By The Transmitter
9 October 2026 | 2 min read
Illustration of primate hands interacting with objects of cognitive tests.

The neuroscience questions that need nonhuman primates

The Transmitter asked 17 neuroscientists what questions might remain unanswered if support for nonhuman primate research continues to decline.

By Alissa de Chassey
9 October 2026 | 10 min read
Research image showing a grid of MRI images.

Silent, motion-resistant fMRI expands scans in behaving mice

The method, called SORDINO, captures brain images in animals while they move and interact.

By Diana Kwon
2 October 2026 | 5 min read
Illustration of pipa frog showing nerves in fingertips.

How the pipa frog hunts prey by touch

Each of the frog’s eight fingers branches into 16 ultra-sensitive tips, which together function as a fovea—potentially the first demonstration of this type of sensory structure outside of mammals.

By Calli McMurray
30 September 2026 | 7 min read
scaled

Response to ‘Finally, a new route for the magnetic-sense field’

Magnetoreception in Drosophila has much to offer those with an interest in neuroscience.

By Denis Henshaw
30 September 2026 | 3 min read
Researcher examining butterfly in lab.

Finally, a new route for the magnetic-sense field

Researchers have dueled for years over how the magnetic sense works. New data from monarch butterflies could finally help settle the debate.

By Calli McMurray
11 September 2026 | 16 min read
Monkeys at Dutch primate center.

Dutch primate center awaits October animal research debate

Science is forging ahead at the Biomedical Primate Research Centre in the Netherlands, following a reversal of last year’s mandate to phase out primate studies. But researchers aren’t sure how long the reprieve will last.

By Lauren Schenkman
2 September 2026 | 5 min read
Rufous horneros bird.

Finding what makes a songbird’s song unique

Oscines and suboscines, two evolutionarily close lineages of birds, do and don’t learn to sing, respectively, helping scientists uncover the neuronal correlates of song learning and variability.

By Natalia Mesa
28 August 2026 | 4 min read
Monkey.

Oregon primate research center to downsize monkey colony, pivot to non-animal models

The center’s host university had been negotiating with the federal government about converting the center into an animal sanctuary. A new plan, approved today, preserves some of the center’s nonhuman primate studies.

By Calli McMurray
27 July 2026 | 5 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Stock illustration of strands of DNA with mutations.

Number of autism-linked genes more than triples in new analyses

In addition to a new preprint that expands the list of genes tied to the condition, two related analyses reveal how variants in those genes contribute to genetic susceptibility.

By Holly Barker
8 October 2026 | 6 min read

How does a control theorist explain cognition?

Maxim Raginsky draws on control theory, engineering and philosophy to explore what makes biological brains intelligent, what artificial intelligence is missing, and what principles underlie biological autonomy.

By Paul Middlebrooks
7 October 2026 | 1 min read

Holographic mesoscope reads, writes from different cortical regions simultaneously

The tool could help reveal how information transmission between areas relates to perception, cognition and behavior.

By Simon Makin
7 October 2026 | 0 min watch