Mouse

Refinements in diabetic research – a technician led initiative

A genetically altered diabetic mouse model (Ins2akita) was introduced to the facility two years ago. From information available, it was expected that heterozygous animals would develop hyperglycaemia, hyperinsulinemia, polydipsia and polyuria by 3 to 4 weeks old with males exhibiting...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Disease/Experimental ModelAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Hill, C., Lyons, C. 2025. Refinements in diabetic research – a technician led initiative. Animal Welfare and Technology 24(3), 254–256.

Environmental exposure to the common trunk of mammalian appeasing pheromone modulates social behavior and reduces fight wounds in male mice

Aggression among group-housed male laboratory mice poses significant challenges for animal welfare and scientific outcomes. Semiochemicals, such as mammalian appeasing pheromones, have shown potential in modulating social behaviors in various species. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Abnormal/Problematic Behavior, Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Fuochi, S., Bienboire-Frosini, C., Descout, E. et al. 2025. Environmental exposure to the common trunk of mammalian appeasing pheromone modulates social behavior and reduces fight wounds in male mice. Animals 15(22).

Adaptation of the Animal Welfare assessment grid (AWAG) model to monitor laboratory rats and mice

The Animal Welfare assessment grid (AWAG) is a cloud based online tool designed to assess and monitor the welfare and cumulative lifetime experience of animals. It has been successfully used to monitor the wellbeing of animals from an experimental, zoological,...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Cunningham, A., Wolfensohn, S., Dennis, M. et al. 2025, December. Adaptation of the Animal Welfare assessment grid (AWAG) model to monitor laboratory rats and mice. Animal Technology and Welfare 4(3), 199–211.

An assessment of paper pulp dishes for safe and enriching diet delivery

It is common practice for laboratory animals to be provided with diet in the form of wet mash or gel for various situations such as post-weaning and postoperative recovery. This study tested the use of paper pulp dishes as a...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Bull, C., Langford-Jackson, L., Rawlings, L. et al. 2025. An assessment of paper pulp dishes for safe and enriching diet delivery. Animal Technology and Welfare 24(3), 282–286.

A rational approach of early humane endpoint determination in a murine model for cholestasis

Reduction of animal suffering during in vivo experiments is usually ensured by continuously monitoring the health status using a score sheet and by applying humane endpoints. However, most studies do not evaluate the plausibility of score sheets and do not...

Year Published: 2020Topics: Disease/Experimental Model, Humane EndpointAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Zhang, X., Kumstel, S., Tang, G. et al. 2020. A rational approach of early humane endpoint determination in a murine model for cholestasis. ALTEX 37(2), 197-207.

A review of pain assessment methods in laboratory rodents

Ensuring that laboratory rodent pain is well managed underpins the ethical acceptability of working with these animals in research. Appropriate treatment of pain in laboratory rodents requires accurate assessments of the presence or absence of pain to the extent possible....

Year Published: 2020Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Chinchilla, Gerbil, Guinea Pig, Hamster, Mouse, Other Rodent, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Turner, P. V., Pang, D. S., Lofgren, J. L. 2019. A review of pain assessment methods in laboratory rodents. Comparative Medicine 69(6), 451–467.

A review of strain and sex differences in response to pain and analgesia in mice

Pain and its alleviation are currently a highly studied issue in human health. Research on pain and response to analgesia has evolved to include the effects of genetics, heritability, and sex as important components in both humans and animals. The...

Year Published: 2020Topics: Analgesia, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Smith J. C. 2019. A review of strain and sex differences in response to pain and analgesia in mice. Comparative Medicine 69(6), 490–500.

Postweaning grouping as a strategy to reduce singly housed male mice

Rearing laboratory mice in groups is important since social isolation after weaning induces brain alterations, which entails behavioral abnormalities in adulthood. Age is an important factor when grouping males of different litters due to inter-male aggressiveness. The aim of this...

Year Published: 2020Topics: Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Grífols, R., Zamora, C., Ortega-Saez, I. et al. 2020. Postweaning grouping as a strategy to reduce singly housed male mice. Animals 10(11), 2135.

Prolonged isolation stress accelerates the onset of Alzheimer’s disease-related pathology in 5xFAD mice despite running wheels and environmental enrichment

Research has demonstrated that stress can exacerbate AD pathology in transgenic mouse models of AD. The purpose of the present studies was to extend this work by determining whether a social stressor, isolation stress, would increase the number of Aβ...

Year Published: 2020Topics: Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Peterman, J.L., White, J.D., Calcagno, A. et al. 2020. Prolonged isolation stress accelerates the onset of Alzheimer’s disease-related pathology in 5xFAD mice despite running wheels and environmental enrichment. Behavioural Brain Research 379, 112366.

What is your tattoo ink telling you?

Tattooing traumatizes the skin, which can result in microbial infections with the severity ranging from minor to life-threating septicemia. Additionally, the metals in colored tattoo ink are known to cause dermal inflammation in some people. In the laboratory animal research...

Year Published: 2020Topics: Identification MethodAnimal Type: All/General, Mouse, Rat, Rodent

Citation: Young, T., Whiteside, T., Locklear, J. 2020. What is your tattoo ink telling you? Laboratory Animal Science Professional 8(2) (March/April), 62-65.