The Naked Mole-Rat (Heterocephalus glaber): A Promising Non-traditional Model for Biomedical Research

The naked mole-rat (NMR) is a mouse-sized fossorial rodent endemic to hot and dry areas in the eastern horn of Africa. The animal has been attracting remarkable interest as a research model due to its unique biological characteristics, which are of great interest to human health. This chapter overviews the key unique biological features of the NMR and their explanatory mechanisms and highlights the management and husbandry that can be applied in the animal under captivity. Most of the research work done on the animal has mainly focused on characterizing its unique biology and unveiling the mechanisms behind the same. The animal has since provided valuable knowledge and insights into the biological mechanisms that play a role in longevity and health span, resistance to cancer and several age-related diseases, pain insensitivity, immunity, tolerance to noxious conditions, and protection against high oxidative stress and damage. Although the NMR is a wild animal, several captive colonies are also found in zoos and research facilities in different parts of the world. In captivity, the housing and other husbandry practices are generally geared to mimic the conditions of the animal’s natural habitat with a temperature range of 28–31 °C and humidity of 40–70%. The NMR housing is usually custom-made and consists of several chambers interconnected by tunnels, but the complexity of the design may vary with the purpose, colony size, space availability, intended duration of captivity, or even between the facilities. The feed generally consists of tubers like sweet potatoes and carrots but supplementation with fruits, vegetables, and commercial rodent cereal is recommended while all the water requirement is obtained from the feed. The unique biological attributes of the NMR make it a favorable model to provide further knowledge and understanding of the mechanisms behind various important human health conditions, which may potentially lead to their interventions.