NIA Mutant Mouse Aging Colony Handbook

**Note: This section is for mutant mice only.

For information on the NIA Aged Rodent Colonies Handbook, see NIA Aged Rodent Colonies Handbook.

Notice: Mutant Mouse Aging Colony to be Terminated

The mutant mouse aging colony is slated to end in September 2013. Old mice will be available until September 2013 but the availability of young mice will end earlier. Entries of different strains into the mutant mouse aging colony will end at different times, dependent on the lifespan and pattern of use of the strain.

• Snell Dwarf (3623) – last entry will be the November 2011 DOB (date of birth)
• Ames Dwarf (324) – last entry will be the October 2012 DOB
• A53T α-synuclein Transgenic (322) – last entry will be the December 2012 DOB
• GFP Transgenic (317) – last entry will be the January 2013 DOB

The National Institute on Aging (NIA) supports a colony of aged mutant and transgenic mice for NIH-supported research directly related to the biology of aging. The mice are raised by the NIA's contractor, Taconic Farms, in Specific Pathogen-Free (SPF) barrier facilities. The strains in the mutant mouse aging colony have been donated by the investigators who developed the models, and those investigators are still the legally recognized owners of the intellectual property. The purpose of this colony is solely to supply aged mice for NIH-supported research using these models of aging and age-related diseases.

A Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) is required to purchase the mice (a one-time requirement per strain). There are restrictions to the use of this colony as described in the MTA. These restrictions include a prohibition against breeding the mice purchased from the NIA Mutant Mouse Aging Colony, agreement that the mice will not be used for commercial purposes, and agreement that the mice and all derivatives will not be transferred to third parties. The restrictions are further spelled out in the MTA.