Mouse Models : Genetics Breeding and Experimental Design

The course (formally Genetics, Breeding and Welfare of Laboratory Mice) is a collaboration between the MRC Harwell, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute.

The content has continually evolved to meet the requirements of the mouse research community. The focus this year will be on experimental design to maximise animal welfare and the application of the 3Rs.

Applications are invited from research and scientific staff who coordinate experimental work on genetically altered mouse lines, including the maintenance of mouse colonies. Applicants should ideally have degree-standard knowledge of genetics, or equivalent.

Topics will include:

- Overview of mouse genetics strains
- Gene & strain nomenclature
- Aspects of good colony management
- Breeding strategies for maintaining inbred, outbred and genetically altered lines
- Establishing and maintaining transgenic lines and gene targeted lines
- Conditional and inducible transgenesis
- CRISPR/Cas9 and emerging technologies for generating GA colonies
- Genotyping
- Quality control strategies for mouse lines
- Workshops on designing breeding programs
- Cryopreservation
- Electronic tools for colony management
- Pilot experiments
- Experimental design:
- Randomisation and blinding
- The experimental unit
- Calculating experimental numbers
- The 3Is
- Ethics and the 3Rs
- Experimental controls
- Statistical analysis

Standardisation and variability : effects of the environment, time and health status on experimental results

Application Deadline: 8 April 2016
Sponsored by Tecniplast.
Price

Residential course fee: GBP 375

Speakers: Ian Jackson (University of Edinburgh, UK), James Bussell (Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, UK), Neil Dear (South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, Australia), Sara Wells (Medical Research Council, UK), Patrick Bateson (University of Cambridge, UK), Ben Davies (University of Oxford, UK), Martin Fray MRC-Harwell, UK), Andy Greenfield (Medical Research Council, UK), Elliot Lilley (RSPCA, UK), Terry Meehan (EBI, UK), Ed Ryder (Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, UK), Lydia Teboul (MRC-Harwell, UK)