Experimental design and statistical analysis in aquatic live animal radiotracing studies: a systematic review

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dc.contributor.authorMcDonald, Sen_AU
dc.contributor.authorCresswell, Ten_AU
dc.contributor.authorHassell, Ken_AU
dc.contributor.authorKeough, MJen_AU
dc.date.accessioned2021-12-22T19:41:14Zen_AU
dc.date.available2021-12-22T19:41:14Zen_AU
dc.date.issued2021-03-18en_AU
dc.date.statistics2021-11-22en_AU
dc.description.abstractLive animal gamma radioisotope tracing enables the monitoring of real-time contaminant uptake and retention in individual animals. It has been employed by ecotoxicologists to understand how animals respond to a variety of aquatic stressors. The use of the technique increases the complexity of the experimental design, resulting in the production of highly detailed and robust longitudinal data of individual animals. The greater complexity of the statistical models that underpin this data create risks from data being treated incorrectly. A systematic review of the literature was undertaken to comprehensively evaluate the experimental design and statistical approaches employed by current aquatic live animal radiotracing studies. The experimental design of current studies was categorized into one of five design “families”. Each experimental design could be described by at least one statistical model, which in turn informs a specific statistical approach. Collectively, 7% of studies provided insufficient information to determine the experimental design used, and 24% of studies undertook no formal statistical analysis of results. When the statistical approaches used in current studies were examined, in most cases the correct approach was undertaken, with only 18% of studies using a statistical approach that did not match the chosen experimental design. This review provides clear guidance on the analysis and interpretation of data collected from each experimental design and explains the advantages and disadvantages of each. Additionally, this paper identifies four key suggestions for future researchers, and provides commentary on the ethical, logistical and cost considerations associated with undertaking experiments that use live animal radiotracing. © 2021 Taylor & Francis Group.en_AU
dc.description.sponsorshipThis study was carried out with the assistance of an Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering (AINSE) Post-Graduate Research Award and a Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment Award from the Ecological Society of Australia, both awarded to S. McDonald. This paper was developed as part of an IAEA CRP on “Applied radioecological tracers to assess coastal and marine ecosystem health” (project code K41019).en_AU
dc.identifier.citationMcDonald, S., Cresswell, T., Hassell, K., & Keough, M. (2022). Experimental design and statistical analysis in aquatic live animal radiotracing studies: a systematic review. Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology, 52(15), 2772-2801. doi:10.1080/10643389.2021.1899551en_AU
dc.identifier.issn1547-6537en_AU
dc.identifier.issue15en_AU
dc.identifier.journaltitleCritical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technologyen_AU
dc.identifier.pagination2772-2801en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1080/10643389.2021.1899551en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttps://apo.ansto.gov.au/dspace/handle/10238/12639en_AU
dc.identifier.volume52en_AU
dc.language.isoenen_AU
dc.publisherTaylor & Francisen_AU
dc.subjectAnimalsen_AU
dc.subjectIsotopesen_AU
dc.subjectRadioisotopesen_AU
dc.subjectTracer techniquesen_AU
dc.subjectAquatic organismsen_AU
dc.subjectRadioecologyen_AU
dc.subjectMetalsen_AU
dc.subjectEthical aspectsen_AU
dc.titleExperimental design and statistical analysis in aquatic live animal radiotracing studies: a systematic reviewen_AU
dc.typeJournal Articleen_AU
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