 Welcome to this month's Animal Research News Roundup where we will be covering our top stories that were published in February 2023. Firstly reported in the Washington Post this February, a new male contraceptive is in development thanks to the keen eye of a postdoctoral researcher named Melanie Baalbeck. In 2018, Baalbeck was helping colleagues to test an experimental eye disease drug which targeted a molecular pathway. This pathway was known to be essential to male fertility. Following her intuition, Baalbeck looked to see if the drug would affect the mobility of free swimming mouse sperm. Five years on and recently published in Nature Communications, the team have successfully showed that an improved version of the drug was able to stop sperm from swimming and maturing within 30 minutes of administering the drug to mice. After two and a half hours, some sperm began to regain normal function and mouse fertility began to return. At this time, male birth control is lacking and only two options are available to men looking to prevent unwanted pregnancy, either condoms or vasectomy. A male contraceptive which acts quickly, works long term and is easy to reverse would not only provide more choice for men but help to reduce the burden on women. Scientists have successfully transplanted human brain tissue into the brains of rats. As a part of research, looking to improve how we study neurological conditions and improve the translatability of animal experiments. This study from the University of Pennsylvania showed that tiny seed-like blobs of neurons can be integrated into the rat brain, successfully linking up blood supply between the human and rat tissue and actively communicating with the rat neurons. The team at Pennsylvania suggests that in the future, we may be able to grow brain tissue from a patient's own cells using rats in the laboratory and repair brain injuries caused by stroke and trauma using this tissue. In early February, the BBC broke the news of a new life-saving gene therapy that had been used to save a 19-month-old child with a rare hereditary condition known as metachromatic leukodystrophy or MLD. The gene therapy marketed under the name Lib-Mel-D involves collecting stem cells from the patient's blood and sending them to a laboratory in order to insert healthy copies of the gene that causes MLD. A modified virus is used to insert healthy copies of the enzyme-producing gene into the DNA, effectively eliminating the disease altogether. Starting with studies on transgenic mice in the early 2000s and moving on to the first human trials in 2010, it has taken nearly 20 years to develop the gene therapy Lib-Mel-D. Next, we are looking at a new defence against COVID-19 known as SHIELD, which is short for Spherical Hydrogel Inhalation for Enhanced Lung Defence. Published in Nature Materials this February, a new inhalable gel creates a physical barrier against infection from SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for causing COVID-19. So far, SHIELD has been tested in mice and monkeys and was able to prevent infection in both animal species for up to 24 hours. The NC3Rs commissioned Dr Francis Ruhl, former director of policy, ethics and governance at the Medical Research Council to provide a detailed review of the current 3Rs landscape. In the report, Dr Ruhl highlights that replacement of animal use could be more fully considered throughout the review process, from funder to regulator. The focus on reduction has increased in recent years and there is greater scrutiny by funders and the AWIRB of experimental design. But investment is needed to address a lack of biostatitions familiar with animal research. Refinement was the best-addressed R with AWIRBs and ASRU frequently identifying opportunities to minimise animal suffering and improve welfare. However, the report highlights the need for better sharing of knowledge and best practice to maximise advances in this area. You can download the report from the NC3Rs website using the links provided below. That's all from this month's News Roundup. Thank you for listening and don't forget to subscribe to the UAR channel for more news, behind the scenes footage from the lab and new and exciting research stories from UAR members.