Diabetic Mice and the Scientific Method
Autor: Megan Shanahan • February 25, 2015 • Research Paper • 1,110 Words (5 Pages) • 1,573 Views
“Diabetic Mice and the Scientific Method”
Several studies have suggested that there is a correlation between the consumption of coffee and a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes. A study conducted in 2010 by Yamauchi et. al., sought to explore this correlation and obtain additional information.
The 2010 was intended to determine two things:
1. Whether the ingestion of coffee ameliorates the development of hyperglycemia and improved insulin sensitivity (satisfaction of these conditions would suggest that coffee has antidiabetic properties (American Diabetes Association 2011:17-20)).
2. Whether caffeine might be one of the antidiabetic compounds in coffee.
The experiment used mice with a genetic predisposition (a mutation) to diabetes. The mice were divided into two groups, a control group and a treatment group (referred to as the “coffee group” by the authors).
The control group mice were only allowed to drink water. The treatment group mice were given a 1:1 solution of black coffee and water as drinking water. Apart from the differences in “drinking water” the two populations were treated identically-they were housed under the same conditions and fed the same food.
The experiment lasted for five weeks. Each weeks, blood samples were collected from the mices’ tails. At the conclusion of the experiment, the mice were euthanized and further analysis of various tissues was conducted.
One of the most important findings of the experiment was the blood glucose of the mice in the test (“coffee”) population was 30% lower, on average, than that of mice in the control population.
The study provides an excellent example of the execution of the scientific method. The researchers did the following:
1. Formulated with a hypothesis (Gower 1996:117-124), namely that coffee has antidiabetic properties.
2. Designed an experimental methodology (Wilson 1991: 271-79) to test this hypothesis, using control (water drinking) and test (coffee drinking) populations. The experimental methodology included a prediction, based on the hypothesis: that the mice in the treatment group would show some improvement in their diabetes, and that the mice in the control group would develop diabetes, as expected, for these mice.
3. Conducted the experiment (this included the acquisition of the data during the five week test period as well as after the euthanasia of the mice), insuring that the only difference between the populations was what the mice were allowed to drink.
4. Evaluated the results of the experiment, using predetermined metrics to assess diabetic impact.
5. Compared the results of the experiment to their hypothesis, and drew the conclusion that in mice, coffee appears to have significant antidiabetic properties.
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