The study of genetically modified mice has greatly expanded our understanding of kidney development and pathophysiology. The UTSW O'Brien Center Animal Models Core will continue to provide cutting edge technology to investigators wishing to generate mouse models for the study of kidney development and/or function. The core will serve three major purposes. One is to provide the necessary reagents and expertise to mouse geneticists who do not normally study the kidney to facilitate and encourage their move into this field. The second is to encourage non-mouse geneticists, especially clinical investigators, to venture into the mouse system and to ease this transition. The third is to provide tools to mouse geneticists who do study the kidney to assist in their studies. This will be accomplished in several ways. First, the core will generate and distribute several kidney specific Cre recombinase and tetracycline inducible activator and repressor lines to be crossed to co-investigator provided floxed or tet responder lines. Second, core personnel will assist in the generation of additional transgenic mice, knockout/in mice and cell lines as required by co-investigators. Finally, core personnel will perform and train investigators in the use of various models of organ injury/repair and ex vivo culture. As mentioned, the ultimate purpose of this core is to facilitate research on kidney development and pathophysiology.
Due to its physiology, size, reproductive cycle, lifespan and the fact that it is an intensively studied model sytstem, the mouse represents the most appropriate experimental system to model human kidney development and pathobiology. As evidenced by its extensive usage, the animal core continues to provide cutting edge services to a broad scientific community.
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