Call for participants: RIVER guidelines for in vitro studies

In vitro experiments play a key role in replacing animal testing. However, the quality of reporting of these experiments is highly variable and publications often lack information on experimental models, which hampers the reusability of the published results.

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The RIVER recommendations

Therefore, the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) in the UK has developed the RIVER reporting system, which stands for ‘Reporting In Vitro Experiments Responsibly’. These recommendations have been developed by a diverse, international working group, with expertise in research funding and publishing, methodology and statistics, and research in academic, regulatory and industry settings.

The RIVER recommendations aim to improve the reliability and transparency of published in vitro research. It consists of a minimum standard for the reporting of in vitro experiments and ensures that manuscripts contain the minimum set of important details so that stakeholders can use the published results as a basis for their future experiments.

RIVER includes 6 recommendations

These recommendations are grouped into three themes: experimental design, experimental procedures and materials, and data handling, accessibility and visualisation. These recommendations are interconnected and need to be considered simultaneously.

1. Experimental unit: define the experimental and biological units used in each experiment;
2. Risks of bias: report whether and how risks of bias were considered and addressed in the design of each experiment;
3. Experimental models: provide details on the model used in each experiment (identity, source and life stage of any cells used, microenvironmental conditions, quality control metrics);
4. Experimental procedure: describe, for each experiment, the experimental procedures in detail (what was done, when and how often, and using which equipment and reagents);
5. Experimental groups and exclusion: report all data obtained from all experimental groups (including controls) and justify any exclusions;
6. Data availability and presentation: share and present data transparently.

Call for participants

Are you a researcher currently preparing a manuscript for publication that includes in vitro models??Would you like to get expert feedback on the transparency and reliability of your work before submission?

Take part in the latest round of user testing:

• Register your interest by Friday 27 September 2024.
• Send your draft manuscript to [email protected] by Friday 25 October 2024.?

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Sources:

• https://nc3rs.org.uk/our-portfolio/river-recommendations
• Link to the download the preprint?: https://doi.org/10.31222/osf.io/x6aut
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ob1sp1WMWo