Where do you go when need a mutant mouse? Why, to any of the new Mutant Mouse Regional Resource Centers (MMRRCs) just opened by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), of course.

If their mice could talk, which they cannot, just yet, they would tell you that according to a July 17 NIH press release, the Mutant Mouse Regional Resource Centers network will be a one-stop shop for the U.S. biomedical research community to donate and acquire "mutant mouse models." 

Researchers who have created genetically mutant strains of mice can donate them to the MMRRC where scientists in need of such mice will be able to request them for use in research of human health, disease, and treatments.

The NIH estimates that more than 3,000 strains of mutant mice that have been created by turning on and off particular genes or by inserting foreign genes into the mouse genome. Considering their importance in human health-related research, these specially altered mice are now seen as a valuable national resource.

"When numerous researchers have access to a shared national resource, such as the MMRRC network," says NCRR Director Dr. Judith Vaitukaitis, "the effectiveness of that resource is maximized relative to its monetary cost and scientific impact." She adds, "Shared resources allow scientists to integrate diverse research expertise, rapidly and effectively study emerging health problems, address complex research queries, and pursue unexpected research opportunities."

The MMRRC network currently includes four donation and distribution facilities located at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; the University of California at Davis; Taconic Farms in New York; and Harlan Sprague Dawley, Inc., in collaboration with the University of Missouri.

All of the centers are electronically linked to function as a single facility, with The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine, providing the point of entry via the MMRRC Web site at www.mmrrc.org. Researchers can currently get information about donating candidate strains of mutant mice at the Web site. By late 2001, the site will also provide detailed genetic information to researchers interested in searching the network for specific maintained strains, ordering mice from the facilities, and registering to receive new strains being developed.

According to the NIH, "each MMRRC facility is equipped to cryopreserve embryos or gametes; rederive strains as needed; and characterize the genetic and phenotypic makeup of the mutants so that models are validated and may optimally serve as models of human disease. Efficient facility systems provide genetic quality control and disease safeguards."

The MMRRCs offer expertise in the biology of laboratory mice — covering areas of cryobiology, genetics, comparative pathology, behavioral science, and infectious disease. In addition, each center focuses on specific research areas such as vascular and cancer biology, endocrinology, or neurobiological sciences.