The rat as an animal model of Alzheimer's disease

• Introduction • The laboratory rat • Rat models of cholinergic‐clysfunction • Aβ‐based models of AD • Transgenic rats ‐ The TgAPPswe rat ‐ The UKUR25 rat ‐ The Tg6590 rat ‐ The triple transgenic rat ‐ The APP21 and APP31 transgenic rats ‐ The AD‐tau rat ‐ Transgenic rats – summary • Virally induced models of AD • Concluding remarks As a disease model, the laboratory rat has contributed enormously to neuroscience research over the years. It has also been a popular animal model for Alzheimer's disease but its popularity has diminished during the last decade, as techniques for genetic manipulation in rats have lagged behind that of mice. In recent years, the rat has been making a comeback as an Alzheimer's disease model and the appearance of increasing numbers of transgenic rats will be a welcome and valuable complement to the existing mouse models. This review summarizes the contributions and current status of the rat as an animal model of Alzheimer's disease.