Abstract
Animal Models in Toxicology edited by Shayne C. Gad is a revised edition of an earlier 1992 version. The text is divided into 15 chapters covering the major laboratory animals (mouse, rat, guinea pig, hamster, dog, non-human primates). Heldover chapters also include the ferret, alternative species, clinical pathology, and laws and regulations governing animal care and usage.
The text is generally well-written, and illustrative figures and photographs (black and white) are adequate. Material in each chapter is logically presented and well organized. Unfortunately, however, a large portion of the text is a verbatim repetition of the 1992 edition. Some more current information and references are provided in multiple chapters for the various species covered. In multiple instances, tabulated data, for example, for neoplasms in both the mouse (Chapter 1) and rat (Chapter 3), use the references from the 1992 edition and do not acknowledge the fact that newer information has been published for Charles River CD-1 mice and rats in 2000 and 2001. In fact, tabulated neoplastic data for Sprague-Dawley rats is entirely absent. As genetically engineered mice are being increasingly used in research, I found the discussion on P53 and TgrasH2 mice to be all too brief and inadequate. The addition of a chapter on the minipig is welcome.
A major fault of this text is the fact that some authors from the 1992 edition were not contacted by Dr. Gad to revise their texts and were unaware that a new edition was being prepared. In fact, some authors are listed at a business address that they have not been working at for a great number of years.
In summary, this book is generally well written, adequately illustrated, and organized in a logical fashion. These are the strengths of the text. Faults lie in the fact that large portions of the text are taken verbatim from the 1st edition, and tabulated data, in some instances, are not the most current information that could be available to the reader. Chapter updates in this 2nd edition partly offset the text's faults and do enhance the reader's understanding about Animal Models In Toxicology.