I don't know, Polly. I haven't figured out the role of rats yet and they for sure haven't told me.
The only thing I know is that they are useful for laboratory experiments.
The thing about it is that rats are everywhere humans are, and are eerily smart.
Ugly too and scary.
I can't answer your question which is also why I avoided mentioning them in the article.
I abhor them.
But thanks for reading the article. I just don't know any good things about rats.