Special Mouse Strains Resource

Recombinant inbred (RI) and chromosome substitution (CS) strain panels

Many common inherited human diseases — such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity, autoimmune disease and cancer — are genetically complex, resulting from the interaction of more than one gene. Advances in genetic methods and the completed sequencing of the human and mouse genomes make it feasible to detect, genetically map and identify the genes underlying these complex disorders.

The SMSR is a resource of special strains of mice that are important tools for genetic analysis of such complex diseases. They include panels of recombinant inbred (RI) and chromosome substitution (CS) strains, also known as consomic strains.

The SMSR imports, cryopreserves and distributes RI and CS strain panels that are vital to discovery of quantitative trait loci (QTL) and ultimately genes responsible for complex diseases. QTL and genes identified by QTL analysis in mouse models often correlate with homologous regions in the human genome. Thus, connecting phenotype and genotype in mice may translate into identification of genes responsible for human complex diseases such as atherosclerosis, diabetes, obesity, asthma, autoimmunity and hypertension.

Available strains

Recombinant inbred and chromosome substitution strain panels

Selected publications

Czechanski A, Byers C, Greenstein I, Schrode N, Donahue LR, Hadjantonakis A-K and Reinholdt LG. 2014. Derivation and characterization of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) from permissive and non-permissive strains. Nat Protoc 9(3):559-74. PMCID: PMC4112089

Donahue LR, Hrabe de Angelis M, Hagn M, Franklin C, Lloyd KCK, Magnuson T, McKerlie C, Nakagata N, Obata Y, Read S, Wurst W, Horlein A, Davisson MT. 2012. Centralized Mouse Repositories, Mammalian Genome 23(9-10):559-71. PMCID: PMC3709583.