Rat defect models for bone grafts and tissue engineered bone constructs

The development of optimized biomaterials for restoring bone defects has been ongoing for many years. Animal models for testing bone grafts and tissue engineered constructs are an important aspect of this research. New bone scaffolding systems need to be tested both in vitro and in vivo, but ultimately animal studies provide answers and confidence in their efficacy prior to clinical applications. A robust set of rat models for understanding bone development in response to implanted materials have been developed. This review will describe frequently used rat bone defect models, such as the calvarial defect, long bone defect, and maxillofacial bone defect models.