[Antonello]

Something I think is important to consider but didn't see mentioned in this article is the genetic lineage of the two groups of rats.

Obviously, most wild rats are descended from ancestry that have adapted to a dirty environment, but what of the lab rats? Were they from stock that has been bred in captivity for generations, or were they (or at least their parents) captured in the wild and transplanted into a 'clean' habitat?

I'd look into this possibility of genetic drift before I went off on a tangent tinged with Lamarck-like leanings.

[jdm]

"Rat study shows dirty better than clean"

I thought this article would be about lib's and their personal hygiene (or lack thereof).

[Zeppo]

"Your immune system is like the person who lives in the perfect house and has all the food they want, you're going to start worrying about the little things like someone stepping on your flowers," Parker said.

Interestingly, this hypothesis goes a long way towards explaining why some clueless rich Americans become Democrats, make a big stink about global warming, and work assiduously to undermine truth, justice, and the American way...

[wizardoz]

No wonder I'm so healthy. I grew up on a farm, went and played in the barn, came in and ate without washing my hands, picked stuff up off the floor and ate it... ROTFL... I'm truly a barbarian, still. But a healthy one.

[Sarajevo]

Parker said he hopes to build a 50-foot artificial sewer for his next step, so that he could introduce the clean lab rats to an artificial dirty environment and see how and when the immunity was activated.

Bwa-ha, bwa-hahahahaha! What a dumb idea!

Wild rats just utilize their immune systems, hence, they have strong immune systems.

[LadyDoc]

What is missing is

1) genetics. Lab mice are interbred

2) sewer rats probably are the few survivors of a large litter. So weak sewer rats died as babies. This is not true of lab rats.

[Flavius]

yes this did wonder for middle ages

one knows that was the pinnacle of European cleanliness

[Libloather]

RAT study shows dirty better than clean