Breeding genetically modified mice for research often produces large numbers of surplus animals - those whose genotypes are unsuitable for either experiments or further breeding. When crossing heterozygous animals to produce specific genotypes, Mendelian inheritance means that a significant proportion of offspring will not carry the desired genetic combination. For complex breeding schemes involving multiple genetic modifications, this problem multiplies substantially.

The home lab (Rubin Lab, DBMR; University of Bern) focuses on in vitro models to investigate lineage plasticity and metastasis and has most recently developed a novel organoid-based model to examine tumour-host interactions and the metastatic niche utilising spatially resolved cerebral organoids.

Our lab develops organs-on-chip (OOC) models, focusing on the lungs, liver and gut. We are creating vascularized tissues-on-chip (patent filed) that better mimic the tissue microenvironment, enabling interaction studies between the vascular systems and their surroundings.

At my home lab I developed an air-liquid-interface in-vitro model of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) respiratory tract to study host-parasite interactions in canids. This model is crucial for understanding the pathogenesis and immune responses in canid lungworm infections and can be extended to study further infectious pathogens, given that foxes are reservoirs for many infective agents. Our model is used for studies on the tissue-specific response to lungworm infections using transcriptomic and proteomic approaches.

The Centre of Experimental Rheumatology specializes in the investigation of rheumatic and skeletal disorders, including systemic sclerosis (SSc). SSc is a paradigm fibrotic disease characterized by multi-organ fibrosis, including the skin. Currently, tools to investigate SSc pathogenesis include traditional two-dimensional (2D) cell culture and animal models, both of which are established at our institute.

This project develops an automated system that monitors pain and well‑being in laboratory mice. The platform aims to improve welfare assessments, reduce bias, and enhance consistency across research laboratories.

Providing mice with well‑designed environmental enrichment can reduce stress, improve wellbeing, and enhance research quality. This project evaluates three commercially available enrichment items to identify science‑based, practical improvements for laboratory mouse housing.

At my home lab, we established several human bladder microtissue models to understand host-uropathogen interactions in patient-like scenarios, to be tested for novel urinary tract infections (UTI) therapeutics. However, they still lack the immune cell component, which is a crucial need for the field and a main expertise of the group of Dr. Molly Ingersoll (host).

Our research group aims to implement various biological questions and models in microphysiological systems (MPS). We have established an iPSC-derived blood-brain barrier on a Mimetas chip (Burgio et al., 2023) and an in vitro kidney model on the Vitrofluid platform (Specioso et al., 2022).

Our research group aims to implement various biological questions and models in microphysiological systems (MPS). We have established an iPSC-derived blood-brain barrier on a Mimetas chip (Burgio et al., 2023) and an in vitro kidney model on the Vitrofluid platform (Specioso et al., 2022).

This project develops genetically sterile host embryos and a sex‑specific fluorescent reporter to streamline the creation of transgenic animals. The approach aims to reduce surplus animals and make transgenic production faster, more accurate, and more humane.

Breeding dystrophic mice is challenging but also essential for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) research. This project evaluates four breeding strategies to identify conditions that improve pup survival, minimise animal use, and strengthen the reliability and efficiency of DMD preclinical studies.

Breeding dystrophic mice is challenging but also essential for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) research. This project evaluates four breeding strategies to identify conditions that improve pup survival, minimise animal use, and strengthen the reliability and efficiency of DMD preclinical studies.

Delivering substances orally with gavage needles is stressful for mice and can compromise data quality. This project develops a gentle, voluntary ingestion method using palatable agar‑based pills, aiming to eliminate stress, improve welfare, and increase the reproducibility of research.

Realistic, 3D‑printed rodent tail models offer a humane, accessible way to learn intravenous injections. By improving and freely distributing these tools, this project enhances technical training quality while reducing reliance on live animals during early skill acquisition.

This project works to standardize human organoid-based drug permeability assays, providing robust, animal-free alternatives for predicting drug absorption and distribution. These validated methods could replace animal studies widely used in early-stage drug development.

This project develops advanced human‑relevant 2D and 3D adrenal and pancreatic cell models to better identify endocrine‑disrupting chemicals. These in‑vitro systems aim to reduce reliance on rodent studies while improving the accuracy and relevance of endocrine toxicity screening.

This project refines how researchers assess the estrous cycle in rodents by combining a minimally invasive monitoring technique with a deep‑learning AI tool. Together, they reduce animal stress, improve classification accuracy, and enhance data quality in female‑inclusive research.

Male mice used for research are often separated due to severe fighting, but this results in social isolation. This study evaluates whether single housing with controlled visual, olfactory, and acoustic contact can enhance animal welfare and reduce stress compared to full isolation.

It is unclear whether hypothermia or isoflurane is the most humane anesthesia method for neonatal mice. Using fMRI and molecular markers, this project aims to establish an evidence‑based, welfare‑optimised approach, to help refine experiments and improve well-being.

This project develops a zebrafish embryo platform to screen bacteriophage‑derived antimicrobials. By shifting testing from rodents to zebrafish embryos, it reduces vertebrate animal use while also supporting the search for new treatments against drug‑resistant infections.

Lung cancer is leading cause of cancer-related deaths. This project validates a new air/liquid interface method for growing patient‑derived lung cancer organoids, creating more reliable tumour models and providing a powerful, animal‑free approach that improves drug‑testing in lung cancer research.

This project developed an automated, computer vision based system to track and analyse the behaviour of research dogs. By generating individual behaviour profiles, this improves welfare monitoring and reduces subjectivity.

This project evaluated non‑surgical embryo transfer as a humane alternative to conventional surgical procedures for generating transgenic mice and rats, aiming to reduce animal suffering and improve procedural safety and efficiency.

BACKGROUND Our group is developing ex-vivo models of human skin to investigate the mechanism of action of therapeutics and evaluate their potential for the treatment of inflammatory skin disease. Using a standard ex-vivo culture approach, we have obtained proof-of-principle data that this approach can predict therapeutic effects on disease-causing cell populations such as T cells […]

Understanding brain development requires systems that capture embryonic complexity while enabling precise manipulation. Dr Camacho will learn an ex utero embryo culture technique, allowing him to research the early stages of embryonic brain development outside of the maternal environment.

This project advances behavioural neuroscience by automating the assessment of anhedonia, motivation and attention in mice using the IntelliCage system, reducing stress and improving data quality through testing in their social home‑cage environment.

Pre‑operative fasting is widely practised in sheep, but guidance is inconsistent and not evidence‑based. This project investigates whether fasting and water restriction are necessary and how they affect animal welfare and physiology, to develop more robust, ethical guidelines.

PNET research has limited human‑relevant models. Keio University has created the first patient‑derived PNET organoids. The University of Bern will adopt this protocol, establish and expand the models, and replace animal methods with a scalable, human‑relevant platform for drug‑response analysis.

The Home Lab will learn to generate iPSC‑derived macrophages (iPSC‑Macs), using them to establish a lung-microbiota on-chip, to provide a human‑relevant model for lung bacterial colonisation and inflammation research.

Intraoperative nociception often goes undetected during general anaesthesia, risking inadequate pain relief and worse post‑operative recovery. This project evaluates a more objective nociceptive monitoring method to support better pain management and improve welfare across multiple animal species.

Understanding how cardiomyocytes mature is essential for studying cardiac disease, damage, and repair. Dr Sileo will learn how to generate reproducible, human cardiomyocytes and will use them to create 3D engineered tissues, enabling more human-relevant cardiac maturation studies.

Fragile X syndrome disrupts early brain development, yet its human‑specific synaptic defects remain poorly understood. This research uses human brain assembloids to study early tripartite synapse abnormalities, offering insights impossible to obtain from animal models.

Understanding how drugs and endogenous molecules enter the brain is essential for developing safer, more effective therapies. This research develops a human‑based in vitro blood‑brain barrier model to better predict uptake transport, reducing reliance on animal experiments.

Identifying effective drug combinations is essential in precision oncology, but testing all the possibilities is impossible. This project uses artificial intelligence and patient‑derived tumor organoids to predict and validate drug synergies, reducing reliance on animal testing in drug development.

Genetic manipulation of mice often relies on tamoxifen, which can cause toxicity, stress, and unreliable results. This project evaluates RU486 and a redesigned Cre system as a more specific and less harmful alternative for controlled gene activation.

PMSG is a widely used hormone in agriculture and research, but relies on blood collection from pregnant horses, raising significant welfare concerns. This project aims to develop a functional, animal-free PMSG, providing a humane, reliable and scalable alternative to current production methods.

This project developed realistic 3D‑printed mouse tail models that allow researchers to practise intravenous injections without using live animals. The models provide lifelike tactile feedback and support more humane, consistent, and efficient training.

This project improves the recognition of discomfort in mice by developing and automating the Mouse Grimace Scale, which enables faster, more consistent, and more accessible pain assessment across research institutions.

Sex bias in animal research reduces reproducibility and increases unnecessary animal use. This project examines how housing of male and female mice influences their biology, welfare, and data variability, generating evidence‑based guidance to improve studies that include both sexes.

This project develops new tools to improve how cell-based treatments for stroke are tested in mice. The toolkit enables non-invasive tracking of transplanted cells and more precise behavioural analysis, greatly improving scientific accuracy while significantly reducing the number of animals needed.

Delivering drugs into the brain is a challenge, because the blood–brain barrier blocks most therapeutic molecules from entering. Microbubble‑focused ultrasound is a promising alternative, which this project aims to refine using a mouse model of schizophrenia‑related neurodevelopmental disorder.

This project uses a fruit‑fly model to identify new genes that drive colorectal cancer cell invasion. By replacing large‑scale mouse studies with efficient Drosophila screening, the team advance cancer‑metastasis research while significantly reducing the number of animals required.

Proliferative Kidney Disease (PKD) is a serious parasitic disease affecting brown trout. This project aims to establish a sensitive and reliable DNA‑based method for detecting the PKD parasite in Swiss rivers, with the ultimate goal of replacing lethal monitoring with a more humane approach.

Medicines taken during pregnancy can cross the placenta and harm the fetus. This project creates a human‑cell based placental barrier model to study drug transfer, offering a more accurate, ethical, and efficient screening approach that avoids traditional animal studies.

Understanding why some cancers resist treatment is a major challenge in oncology. This project develops a standardised platform to generate high‑quality organoids from genitourinary (GU) cancer patients, reducing animal use and supporting a more personalised approach.

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a severe, progressive lung disease with few treatment options. The standard rodent model poorly predicts human outcomes and causes significant distress. This project develops a physiologically relevant lung‑on‑chip platform to test anti‑fibrotic drugs.

Behavioural testing is central to neuroscience research, yet current tools are outdated and lead to high animal use and poor reproducibility. This project applies modern machine‑learning approaches to streamline behavioural analysis, reduce animal use, and provide accessible tools for others.

This project develops an animal-free medium for fish cell lines, to eliminate the last animal-derived component used in fish cell based toxicology and accelerate ethical environmental risk assessment.

This project develops evidence-based best-practice guidelines for rodent surgery. In doing so, the project improves animal welfare, enhances research reproducibility, and reduces unnecessary animal suffering.

Organoids are powerful models, but most require basement membrane extracts harvested from tumour-bearing mice. This project develops recombinant laminin-like proteins to create animal-free matrices that support organoid growth, while reducing the need for thousands of mice used for BME production.

Scientists often use genetically modified animals for their research, but this requires complex breeding schemes. This project is creating software that helps to design breeding schemes more efficiently, achieving the required genetic combinations while keeping surplus animals to a minimum.

Training surgeons on live animals remains common in many countries, despite ethical concerns and the availability of emerging alternatives. This project addresses this by developing an accessible, low‑cost pipeline for producing realistic 3D heart models for surgical training.

Understanding how different cell types form during embryonic development is vital for regenerative medicine. Instead of relying on traditional mammalian models like mice, this project uses CRISPR/Cas9 screening directly in chicken embryos, eliminating the need to sacrifice pregnant animals.

We want to learn the intubation technique to refine the current intratracheal instillation surgery technique. Intubation is used in several rodent models, to study lung physiological and pathological models. Intubation has been is along-established technique extensively performed in rats.