Liggins Institute seminar: Meta-analyzing animal studies and animal models: finding generality among heterogeneities Event as iCalendar

Meta-analysis has become a standard way of synthesizing the medical and social literature. However, this powerful statistical technique is under-utilised in synthesizing the literature on animal (model) studies. It is not a surprise that this is the case as traditional meta-analytic techniques usually only deal with controlled trails on human data.

To illustrate the usefulness of meta-analysis in animal studies,

Dr Shinichi Nakagawa

introduces three of his recent meta-analyses across animal taxa: 1) life-extension via dietary restriction; 2) the fitness consequences of compensatory growth; and 3) the effect of resveratrol on longevity. In this talk he will also introduce other examples of how animal model studies can be brought together in one big meta-analysis; and discuss the new meta-analytic method, which he was involved in developing and how this method can cope with heterogeneous data with multiple species. Dr Shinichi Nakagawa advocates the use of meta-analysis in many fields where animals are used as human models.

Dr Shinichi Nakagawa

is originally from Japan. He completed his BSc(Hons) at the University of Waikato in 2003 and obtained his PhD at the University of Sheffield, UK, in 2007. He is currently a senior lecturer within the Department of Zoology, at the University of Otago. His research group has published over 50 papers in international peer-reviewed journals since his arrival at Otago in 2008; his research topics include behavioural ecology, evolutionary biology, molecular ecology and applied statistics. He is an editor of Behavioral Ecology, an associate editor of

and Emu:

and on the editorial board of three other journals including

.

Light refreshments provided

For more information please contact:

Dongxu Liu

Phone: 09-373 7599 Extn 89603

Email:

dx.liu@auckland.ac.nz

Dr Martin de Bock

Phone: 09-373 7599 Extn 82769

Email:

m.debock@auckland.ac.nz