Animal testing and alternatives
Animal testing and alternatives is a research topic within Small Animals. Science Explorer counts 18k research works in it since 1950. 15.0% of them reached the world's top 10% most cited for their field and year.
This cluster of papers focuses on improving the reporting and conduct of animal research studies, with an emphasis on the use of ARRIVE guidelines, cytotoxicity assays, ethical considerations, systematic reviews, in vitro testing methods, and addressing publication bias. It also discusses the challenges in translating findings from animal studies to human applications and the determination of sample sizes for preclinical studies.
- ARRIVE Guidelines
- Animal Research Reporting
- Cytotoxicity Assays
- Preclinical Studies
- Translation to Humans
- Ethical Considerations
- Systematic Reviews
- In Vitro Testing
- Publication Bias
- Sample Size Determination
- Research works
- 18k fractional, since 1950
- In the world top 10%
- 2.7k per year above
- Top-10% rate
- 15.0% share of its works in the world top 10%
- Growth, 2013–17 → 2018–22
- +11% the tick is no change
This ranks research output and citation impact. It says nothing about the quality of diagnosis, treatment or care.
Which countries lead Animal testing and alternatives research?
By volume, the United States and Germany publish the most (751 and 167 works in 2022–2025).
By volume, 2022–2025
- 1 United States 751 works
- 2 Germany 167 works
- 3 United Kingdom 149 works
- 4 India 138 works
- 5 Brazil 120 works
- 6 China 109 works
- 7 France 99 works
- 8 Japan 77 works
- 9 Italy 62 works
- 10 Netherlands 52 works
How concentrated that is
The same countries as shares of everything the list above accounts for. A node where two countries do two thirds of the work and one spread evenly across twelve read alike as a ranking and not at all alike here.
Shares of the rows listed above, not of the whole node.
Which institutions lead Animal testing and alternatives research?
By volume in 2022–2025, Universidade de São Paulo publishes the most Animal testing and alternatives research, followed by University of Michigan and University of Pennsylvania.
By volume, 2022–2025
- 1 Universidade de São Paulo Brazil 27 works
- 2 University of Michigan United States 27 works
- 3 University of Pennsylvania United States 26 works
- 4 Research Institute for Fragrance Materials United States 25 works
- 5 University of Arizona United States 24 works
- 6 University of Würzburg Germany 24 works
- 7 Columbia University Irving Medical Center United States 23 works
- 8 Oregon Health & Science University United States 23 works
- 9 University of Tennessee at Knoxville United States 21 works
- 10 Lund University Sweden 20 works
Where is Animal testing and alternatives research done?
The largest centres of Animal testing and alternatives research in 2022–2025 are New York (United States), São Paulo (Brazil), London (United Kingdom) and Paris (France). Among places with at least 20 works in it, it is an unusually large share of all research in Woodcliff Lake, Wurzburg and Portland.
Largest cities, 2022–2025
- 1 New York United States 49 works
- 2 São Paulo Brazil 44 works
- 3 London United Kingdom 39 works
- 4 Paris France 34 works
- 5 Philadelphia United States 34 works
- 6 Washington D.C. United States 33 works
- 7 Ann Arbor United States 29 works
- 8 Tokyo Japan 28 works
- 9 Wurzburg Germany 26 works
- 10 Woodcliff Lake United States 25 works
Where it is the local speciality
- Woodcliff LakeUS · 25.2 works820×
- WurzburgDE · 25.7 works29×
- PortlandUS · 24.0 works15×
- KnoxvilleUS · 21.0 works15×
- LundSE · 20.7 works13×
- TucsonUS · 24.6 works13×
Location quotient: how much more of its research is in Animal testing and alternatives than the world average.
Where is the best place to study Animal testing and alternatives?
Among universities, judged by research, University of Pennsylvania, Lund University and University of Würzburg score highest, combining excellence, specialisation, size, growth and international reach. Research strength is one signal when choosing where to study; it does not measure teaching.
One dot per university in the table below. The upper left is the interesting corner: small places doing unusually strong work.
| # | University | Score | Top 10% | Specialisation | Works | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Pennsylvania United States | 66.8 | 6.0% | 12.3× | 26 | +272.2% |
| 2 | Lund University Sweden | 64.9 | 1.0% | 15.1× | 20 | +621.8% |
| 3 | University of Würzburg Germany | 64.4 | 0.4% | 45.4× | 24 | +266.3% |
| 4 | University of Arizona United States | 62.7 | 1.8% | 16.3× | 24 | +424.1% |
| 5 | Oregon Health & Science University United States | 60.2 | 1.1% | 32.1× | 23 | +379.1% |
| 6 | University of Tennessee at Knoxville United States | 59.5 | 1.5% | 22.3× | 21 | +369.0% |
| 7 | University of Basel Switzerland | 59.1 | 24.9% | 14.1× | 9 | +68.1% |
| 8 | University of Michigan United States | 58.5 | 1.2% | 8.4× | 27 | +266.6% |
| 9 | Hamamatsu University School of Medicine Japan | 47.5 | 0.1% | 156.7× | 19 | — |
| 10 | Universidade de São Paulo Brazil | 43.2 | 1.1% | 6.5× | 27 | +30.1% |
Universities only. Score blends excellence (30%), specialisation (25%), size (20%), growth (15%) and international reach (10%), 2015–2022; growth compares 2010–14 with 2015–19.
Is Animal testing and alternatives research growing?
Output in 2018–2022 was 11% higher than in 2013–2017, peaking in 2025. The fastest-growing topics are Animal testing and alternatives.
The same series as a ribbon — one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.
Which topics inside it are moving
Growth and decline on one axis around a shared zero. Two lists side by side hide the thing that matters: whether the growth dwarfs the decline, or the other way round.