Mouse

Sustained-release buprenorphine improves postsurgical clinical condition but does not alter survival or cytokine levels in a murine model of polymicrobial sepsis

Cecal ligation and perforation (CLP) is a common technique for studying sepsis in mice. Because of the invasiveness of the procedure and its effects on clinical condition, many animal care and use committees require the use of analgesics with CLP....

Year Published: 2016Topics: Analgesia, Disease/Experimental ModelAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Herndon, N. L., Bandyopadhyay, S., Hod, E. A. et al. 2016. Sustained-release buprenorphine improves postsurgical clinical condition but does not alter survival or cytokine levels in a murine model of polymicrobial sepsis. Comparative Medicine 66(6), 455–462.

Return to home cage’ as a reward for maze learning in young and old genetically heterogeneous mice

Recent studies have shown that 'return to home cage' can serve as a reward for maze learning in adult male mice. The present study examined whether the same reward is an effective motivator of learning in young and old mice...

Year Published: 2006Topics: Animal TrainingAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Blizard, D. A., Weinheimer, V. K, Klein, L. C. et al. 2006. 'Return to home cage' as a reward for maze learning in young and old genetically heterogeneous mice. Comparative Medicine 56(3), 196-201.

Social housing promotes cognitive function through enhancing synaptic plasticity in APP/PS1 mice

Previous studies have shown that loneliness increases the risk of AD (Alzheimer's disease) onset, while active and frequent social housing delays the onset of cognitive impairment. The mechanism of how this occurs remains unclear. In this study, we investigated how...

Year Published: 2019Topics: Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Liang, F., Yang, S., Zhang, Y. et al. 2019. Social housing promotes cognitive function through enhancing synaptic plasticity in APP/PS1 mice. Behavioural Brain Research 368, 111910.

Loss of control over mild aversive events produces significant helplessness in mice

This article is about the importance of giving mice control over what happens to them. Most of the pathophysiology of depression are still unknown because of its numerous disease states of distinct etiology and pathogenesis. Stressful rodent models have been...

Year Published: 2019Topics: Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Yao, L., Li, Y., Qian, Z. et al. 2019. Loss of control over mild aversive events produces significant helplessness in mice. Behavioural Brain Research 376, 112173.

Ultrasound to UltraSee: The use of ultrasound to determine pregnancy in mice

In March 2017 MRC Ares bought an ultrasound machine to assist in determining pregnancy in timed mating mice. Prior to this, visual checks or palpation would be used to confirm pregnancy. There were limitations with these methods as mice generally...

Year Published: 2019Topics: ReproductionAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Kemp, K. 2018. Ultrasound to UltraSee: The use of ultrasound to determine pregnancy in mice. Animal Technology and Welfare 17(3), 193-195 (IAT Congress 2018 Poster Presentation).

Give us a break!

Literature is replete with studies on stressors to laboratory rodents; knowing the impact research and husbandry interventions, such as routine cage changing, have on rodents' stress levels, physiology and behaviour, we hypothesised that animals recovering in a familiar environment would...

Year Published: 2019Topics: Disease/Experimental Model, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Filby, E. 2019. Give us a break! Animal Technology and Welfare 18(1), 45-48.

Optimising health & welfare tracking using the Sanger Mouse Database

Health tracking of animals is required legally under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA) to prevent pain, avoidable suffering, distress or lasting harm. This is important with Genetically Modified (GM) animals as they are more likely to have unexpected...

Year Published: 2019Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Dench, J., McLaren-Jones, R., Vancollie, V. et al. 2019. Optimising health & welfare tracking using the Sanger Mouse Database. Animal Technology and Welfare 18(1), 62-64.

Refining mouse re-derivation by using in vitro fertilisation (IVF) with fresh or frozen sperm as opposed to embryos

To attempt to reduce, refine and replace, we have employed a several new approaches to rederive mouse strains. By using in vitro fertilisation (IVF) with fresh or frozen sperm we can reduce the timeframe and number of animals required to...

Year Published: 2019Topics: ReproductionAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Travers, A., Thomson, J., Sharp, M. 2019. Refining mouse re-derivation by using in vitro fertilisation (IVF) with fresh or frozen sperm as opposed to embryos. Animal Technology and Welfare 18(1), 73-74.

Report of the 2018 RSPCA/UFAW Rodent and Rabbit Welfare Group meeting

The RSPCA/UFAW Rodent (and now Rabbit) Working Group has held a one-day meeting every autumn for the last 25 years, so that its members can discuss current welfare research, exchange views on welfare issues and share experiences of the implementation...

Year Published: 2019Topics: Anesthesia & Sedation, Husbandry & ManagementAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Stevens, C., Hawkins, P., Lovell-Badge, R. et al. 2019. Report of the 2018 RSPCA/UFAW Rodent and Rabbit Welfare Group meeting. Animal Technology and Welfare 18(2), 81-91.

A comparison of enrichment items for the promotion of natural gnawing behaviour in laboratory mice

Appropriate housing and husbandry, including environmental enrichment, must take the natural habitat, biology and behaviour of each species into consideration. The Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (1996) states that the goal should always be to maximise...

Year Published: 2019Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Mouse, Rodent

Citation: Lopez Juaristi, 2019. A comparison of enrichment items for the promotion of natural gnawing behaviour in laboratory mice. Animal Technology and Welfare 18(2), 93-97.