Posted on May 1, 2020
It is well understood in biomedical research community that mice are a preferred mammalian disease model because of their high genetic homology with humans, rapid reproduction, efficient housing and husbandry, easily characterized phenotypes, and well developed resources and tools for genetic manipulation. As the need for genetically engineered mice grows so does the importance of ensuring rigorous, reliable and reproducible research which is best accomplished through the use of biorepositories.
To further support the efforts of resource sharing and eliminating variability in mouse model research, the National Institutes for Health (NIH) has renewed funding for its Mutant Mouse Resource and Research Centers (MMRRC) biorepository program. The MMRRC was created in 1997, and UC Davis has played a pivotal role over the past two decades in the exponential growth of mouse model holdings in the repository. The new grant will provide a total of $6,722,070 over five years to the MMRRC at UC Davis. MBP.
“We are very pleased to have earned this renewed support. Over the next five year grant cycle, the UC Davis MMRRC will continue to acquire new mouse strains of scientific value to the research community as well as develop new novel mouse models that meet critical research needs of biomedical investigators” said Kent Lloyd, PI of the MMRRC and program director of the Mouse Biology Program.
UC Davis is one of four sites around the nation to have received renewal funding to continue operating as a regionally-distributed consortium. The role of the MMRRC consortium is to offer reliable, accessible, quality-control, and scientifically annotated mutant mouse strains to biomedical researchers. Strains are available as live mice, cryopreserved germplasm, embryos or cell lines, including embryonic stem (ES) cells and hybridomas. As one of the founding members of the consortium, the MMRRC will work in collaboration with MMRRC colleagues at the University of Missouri, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Jackson Laboratories, in Bar Harbor. Since 1999, the MMRRC at UC Davis has work hard to ensure the quality and welfare of distributed animals, and uphold the highest standards of experimental design to optimize the reproducibility of research studies using mutant mice.
“As the largest of the four Centers in the MMRRC, the UC Davis MMRRC has built a solid reputation of providing innovative approaches and next generation strategies to catalyze and accelerate the development of genetically-altered mouse models for biomedical research,” said Lloyd. “Our team is excited to continue our participation and leadership in the MMRRC consortium to assist researchers, translational investigators, and clinician scientists identify, access, and use the most appropriate mouse models to study functional genomics in health and disease.”
