GemPharmatech and UC Davis Sign Agreement to Distribute Mouse Models in the US to Better Serve US Academic and Pre-Clinical R&D Communities
April 19, 2021 08:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time
WILMINGTON, Del.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--GemPharmatech (GemPharmatech Co. Ltd., "GPT") announced the agreement for UC Davis Mouse Biology Program to provide services to re-animate, cryopreserve and ship live mice to GemPharmatech customers in the US.
"This arrangement in California with a world class facility gives us easy access to many top research institutions on the west coast and the ability to ship anywhere in the US easily"
GemPharmatech Co. Ltd. is a leading global provider of animal models including humanized animal models supporting pre-clinical research and development. Since 2017, GPT has been creating a collection of more than 15,000 animal models. The establishment of this relationship will allow GPT clients to receive mice in the US from a US facility with shorter shipping time and lower cost and enables GPT to provide animal models and related services faster and closer to its customers in the R&D communities including large pharmaceutical and Biotech companies, contract research organizations (CROs), universities, and research institutions throughout the US.
"As Director of the Mouse Biology Program, I am very happy to facilitate availability and access to GemPharmatech's ever expanding suite of conditional and other scientifically valuable mouse models to research scientists in our hemisphere," said Dr. Kent Lloyd, Professor of Surgery in the School of Medicine and Director of the Mouse Biology Program at UC Davis. "I look forward to working with the research community to use these models to explore the functional role of genes in specific cells and tissues in vivo."
The University of California, Davis (UC Davis) Mouse Biology Program (MBP) is an academic resource providing expertise and consultation, including technological assistance, infrastructure and support to the scientific community in the development, application and use of genetically-altered mice for biomedical research on diseases, behavioral abnormalities and developmental disorders. The MBP will support GemPharmatech's distribution efforts in North America, including performing cryo-recoveries to live mice and distribution of germplasm.
"I am delighted to announce this Service Agreement, as I have worked with the Mouse Biology Program in various other roles for over 20 years," said Dr. Moore, President and CEO of GemPharmatech LLC, a US subsidiary of GemPharmatech Co., Ltd. "This arrangement in California with a world class facility gives us easy access to many top research institutions on the west coast and the ability to ship anywhere in the US easily," continued Dr. Moore.
About GemPharmatech
GemPharmatech, Co., Ltd (GPT) is a leading provider in animal models and services, especially in the development of humanized animal models, to global Pre-Clinical R&D Communities. The Company is specialized in developing animal models using cutting edge gene-editing technologies with a large collection of cKO/KO (conditional knockout/knockout) mice, humanized mice, immunodeficiency mice and Germfree mice. GemPharmatech provides a one-stop service as model customization, breeding, phenotyping, and pharmacology services including drug efficacy test and mouse phenotyping, CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing, ES HR, transgenic, cryopreservation, assisted reproduction, rapid expansion and derivatives and customized breeding. The company has developed one of the world's largest mouse strain resources to inspire scientific innovation and accelerate drug discovery. GemPharmatech LLC is a wholly owned US subsidiary of GemPharmatech, Co., Ltd., located in Wilmington, Delaware. Visit http://www.gempharmatech.com for details.
About Mouse Biology Program
The UC Davis Mouse Biology Program (MBP) is an internationally recognized academic teaching, research, and service program providing scientists around the globe with state-of-the art technologies and scientific expertise in mouse breeding, embryo manipulation, mutagenesis, and phenotyping expertise, products, and procedures. MBP resources include dedicated infrastructure, technical expertise, and scientific consultation that are made available to assist researchers plan, design, and create mutant mouse models of human and animal pathobiology for hypothesis-generating and hypothesis-driven research. The MBP develops, refines, and implements next generation production and analytical techniques, such as CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing, conditional mutagenesis, ES cell gene targeting, PDX development, in vivo analytical phenotyping, advanced imaging technologies, and comprehensive pathology services to capitalize on the versatility of the mouse as a human surrogate in the preclinical research arena. Products and services are provided to academic users on a fee-for-service basis. Visit https://www.mousebiology.org/ for details.
Contacts
Media:
Gann Xu, Ph. D.
Executive Director
GemPharmatech LLC
888 899 5899
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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NIH Grant to Create Humanized Mice Susceptible to COVID-19
By Andy Fell on August 3, 2020, in Human & Animal Health
The National Institutes of Health has awarded a grant of $1.2 million to the Mouse Biology Program at the University of California, Davis, to create mice that are susceptible to the COVID-19 virus, and to distribute them to researchers.
The goal is to create mice that can be used to reproduce human COVID-19 disease, said Kent Lloyd, director of the Mouse Biology Program and professor in the Department of Surgery at the UC Davis School of Medicine. Mice and rats are not naturally infected by SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. The virus enters human cells by attaching to a protein called ACE2. Lloyd’s team plans to create “humanized” laboratory mice by using CRISPR-Cas9 technology to precisely replace the genetic code for the mouse equivalent of ACE2 with the code for human ACE2. They will also do the same with other human proteins thought to play a role in COVID-19 disease, such as TMPRSS2, which is thought to work with ACE2 to get the virus into cells. These lab mice will enable new investigations of how the virus attacks the body, why some people are more susceptible than others, and how COVID-19 might be prevented or treated. As new genes involved in COVID-19 disease are discovered, they could also be engineered into mice, Lloyd said. Researchers might even be able to look at the effect of genetic variations in key genes on the course of disease. Lloyd expects the mice to become available in about six months.
The UC Davis Mouse Biology Program is a member of the NIH-funded Mutant Mouse Resource and Research Centers. The network collects and characterizes gene-modified and genetic knockout lab mice, and makes them available to researchers worldwide. The NIH recently renewed funding for the UC Davis center, now in its 21st year, for another five years.
Media contact(s)
Kent Lloyd, Mouse Biology Program, 530-754-6687,This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Amy Quinton, News and Media Relations, 530-752-9843, cell 530-601-8077,This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
UPDATE: March 7, 2021 MBP Operations Status
We are actively monitoring the situation with COVID-19. In accordance with state, local, and university guidelines, the University of California Davis, and the UC Davis Mouse Biology Program, are currently in Phase 3 of recovery. We have been given campus authorization to resume services, including beginning new projects, though with continued staffing restrictions, thus limiting our scheduling capacity; we will work closely with institutions and couriers, as there are still flight concerns, to ensure the safety and health of personnel, live animals, and research materials. We appreciate your understanding of delays experienced during this time.
Customer service will continue to primarily operate remotely. If you need to contact us, we are available via email (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) or we can schedule a Zoom teleconference (we have limited access to our office phones).
UC Davis Mouse Biology Program Responds to Campus Fiscal Challenges
(June 24, 2020, DAVIS, CA) As the University of California Davis prepares for the fiscal impact of funding cuts in the state’s 2020-2021 budget due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the UC Davis Mouse Biology Program (MBP) is taking the unprecedented step by returning $275,000 from its reserve account to the University’s Office of the Provost. In the spirit of campus community, this generous donation comes at a time when the campus is facing unparalleled financial challenges as it deals with the effects of SARS-CoV-2. These funds will allow the Office of the Provost to support campus teaching and research programs with the greatest need.
UCDavis_Mouse_Biology_Program_Responds_to_Campus_Fiscal_Challenges_624.2020.docx
MBP Now A Special Research Program Under Office Of Research
As the Mouse Biology Program (MBP) begins its third decade of service as a scientific resource for campus researchers, we are pleased to announce that effective March 1st we will join the UC Davis Office of Research. With operational and administrative oversight provided by the Office of Research, this move will place MBP in a better position to support the needs of campus investigators conducting research using mutant mice. This move will also better enable us to provide innovative products, unique services, and specialized infrastructure for research in areas of human and animal health and precision medicine. During this transition, we do not expect any slowdown in delivery or interruption of current or future orders and services to researchers.
Since 1997, the MBP has grown from one small laboratory to a large and vibrant organization playing an essential role in biomedical discovery by facilitating the availability and accessibility of next-generation mouse models and mouse mutagenesis and other strategies. This dedicated focus has enabled the MBP to become one of the largest academic based programs in the world. By relocating under the Office of Research, the MBP will be able to “Outgrow the Expected” and position UC Davis at the global epicenter of mouse based research.