Murillo-Cuesta, SilviaArtuch, RafaelAsensio, FernandoVilla, Pedro de laDierssen, MaraEnríquez, Jose AntonioFillat i Fonts, CristinaFourcade, StéphaneIbáñez, BorjaMontoliu, LluisOliver, EduardoPujol, Aurora, 1968-Salido, EduardoVallejo, MarioVarela Nieto, Isabel2020-11-232020-11-232020Murillo-Cuesta S, Artuch R, Asensio F, de la Villa P, Dierssen M, Enríquez JA, Fillat C, Fourcade S, Ibáñez B, Montoliu L, Oliver E, Pujol A, Salido E, Vallejo M, Varela-Nieto I. The value of mouse models of rare diseases: a spanish experience. Front Genet. 2020; 11:583932. DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2020.5839321664-8021http://hdl.handle.net/10230/45844Animal models are invaluable for biomedical research, especially in the context of rare diseases, which have a very low prevalence and are often complex. Concretely mouse models provide key information on rare disease mechanisms and therapeutic strategies that cannot be obtained by using only alternative methods, and greatly contribute to accelerate the development of new therapeutic options for rare diseases. Despite this, the use of experimental animals remains controversial. The combination of respectful management, ethical laws and transparency regarding animal experimentation contributes to improve society's opinion about biomedical research and positively impacts on research quality, which eventually also benefits patients. Here we present examples of current advances in preclinical research in rare diseases using mouse models, together with our perspective on future directions and challenges.application/pdfeng© 2020 Murillo-Cuesta, Artuch, Asensio, de la Villa, Dierssen, Enríquez, Fillat, Fourcade, Ibáñez, Montoliu, Oliver, Pujol, Salido, Vallejo and Varela-Nieto. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.info:eu-repo/semantics/articlehttp://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fgene.2020.583932Animal modelsEthicsNovel therapiesOrphan diseasesPreclinical researchTransparencyinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess