Unconventional animal models of Alzheimer’s disease and aging: key insights from the UAMAA 2026 conference
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) remains a major unmet medical challenge, highlighting the need for improved experimental models. The second Unconventional Animal Models of Alzheimer’s Disease and Aging (UAMAA 2026) conference brought together ~150 interdisciplinary researchers to discuss advances across 19 animal models of AD and aging. Six major themes emerged: naturally occurring AD-like pathology, neuroinflammation, population heterogeneity, development of genomic and molecular resources, companion dogs as translational models and the promise of laboratory-amenable species such as the Chilean degu and common marmoset. These discussions highlighted the growing value of cross-species approaches for advancing translational AD research.
Authors
- Xiangmin Xu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5828-1533)
- Todd C. Holmes (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8152-8832)
- Tonatiuh Melgarejo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3307-6218)
- Patricia Cogram (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4198-0821)
- B. Maximiliano Garduño (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8828-0614)
Institutions
- University of California, Irvine (US)
- Institute of Ecology and Biodiversity (CL)
- University of Chile (CL)
- Western University of Health Sciences (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Lab Animal
- Published
- 2026-09-16
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41684-026-01789-4
- Primary Topic
- Genetics, Aging, and Longevity in Model Organisms
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- National Institutes of Health
- National Institute on Aging