For more than 50 years, the research community has made strides to better determine the nutrient requirements for many common laboratory animal species. This work has resulted in high-quality animal feeds that can optimize growth, maintenance, and reproduction in most species. We have a much better understanding of the role that individual nutrients play in physiological responses. Today, diet is often considered as an independent variable in experimental design, and specialized diet formulations for experimental purposes are widely used. In contrast, drinking water provided to laboratory animals has rarely been a consideration in experimental design except in studies of specific water-borne microbial or chemical contaminants. As we advance in the precision of scientific measurements, we are constantly discovering previously unrecognized sources of experimental variability. This is the nature of science. However, science is suffering from a lack of experimental reproducibility or replicability that undermines public trust. The issue of reproducibility/replicability is especially sensitive when laboratory animals are involved since we have the ethical responsibility to assure that laboratory animals are used wisely. One way to reduce problems with reproducibility/replicability is to have a strong understanding of potential sources of inherent variability in the system under study and to provide “…a clear, specific, and complete description of how the reported results were reached [1].” A primary intent of this review is to provide the reader with a high-level overview of some basic elements of laboratory animal nutrition, methods used in the manufacturing of feeds, sources of drinking water, and general methods of water purification. The goal is to provide background on contemporary issues regarding how diet and drinking water might serve as a source of extrinsic variability that can impact animal health, study design, and experimental outcomes and provide suggestions on how to mitigate these effects.

中文翻译：

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饲料和饮用水对陆生动物研究和研究可重复性的影响。

50 多年来，研究界在更好地确定许多常见实验动物物种的营养需求方面取得了长足的进步。这项工作产生了高质量的动物饲料，可以优化大多数物种的生长、维持和繁殖。我们对个别营养素在生理反应中的作用有了更好的了解。今天，饮食通常被认为是实验设计中的一个独立变量，用于实验目的的专门饮食配方被广泛使用。相比之下，在实验设计中很少考虑提供给实验动物的饮用水，除非研究特定的水传播微生物或化学污染物。随着科学测量精度的提高，我们不断地发现以前无法识别的实验变异性来源。这是科学的本质。然而，科学正因缺乏实验可重复性或可复制性而受到损害，这会破坏公众的信任。当涉及实验室动物时，再现性/可复制性问题尤其敏感，因为我们有道德责任确保明智地使用实验室动物。减少重现性/可重复性问题的一种方法是深入了解所研究系统中固有可变性的潜在来源，并提供“......对报告结果如何获得的清晰、具体和完整的描述[ 科学正遭受缺乏实验可重复性或可复制性的困扰，这削弱了公众的信任。当涉及实验室动物时，再现性/可复制性问题尤其敏感，因为我们有道德责任确保明智地使用实验室动物。减少重现性/可重复性问题的一种方法是深入了解所研究系统中固有可变性的潜在来源，并提供“......对报告结果如何获得的清晰、具体和完整的描述[ 科学正遭受缺乏实验可重复性或可复制性的困扰，这削弱了公众的信任。当涉及实验室动物时，再现性/可复制性问题尤其敏感，因为我们有道德责任确保明智地使用实验室动物。减少重现性/可重复性问题的一种方法是深入了解所研究系统中固有可变性的潜在来源，并提供“......对报告结果如何获得的清晰、具体和完整的描述[1]。” 本综述的主要目的是为读者提供实验室动物营养的一些基本要素、饲料制造方法、饮用水源和水净化的一般方法的高级概述。目标是提供有关饮食和饮用水如何成为影响动物健康、研究设计和实验结果的外在变异性来源的当代问题的背景，并提供有关如何减轻这些影响的建议。