Literature Searches for Animal Testing Alternatives

Choosing Databases

After identifying key concepts and constructing a good search question, the next step is selecting a good database. Databases vary by the type and number of records they contain, their dates of coverage, the formats of literature they consider (i.e., books, articles, and/or multimedia items), and the scope (or subject area(s)) of the database.

When searching for animal research alternatives, it is very important to look in more than one database. It should also be noted that MEDLINE is indexed by many databases, and you should avoid searching there twice (i.e. PubMed, MEDLINE, and Google Scholar all have the same coverage, and searching all three would be duplicative).

Recommended Databases

Specialized 3Rs Alternatives Databases are available for free on the Internet. These are small collections of citations that have been either collected by the database provider or culled from larger databases. While some are affiliated with U.S. government or academic institutions, others have an international focus.

UTSA Subscribed Databases are paid for by the library and only available to UTSA-affiliated researchers, staff, or students. These focus on general subject areas. Some physics and computer science databases are included and can be helpful for researchers looking for computer models.

Free Online Databases are focused on general subject areas, such as medicine, agriculture, and toxicology.