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The Instituto de Neurociencias (IN) RMG animal facility houses mice under specific pathogen-free (SPF) conditions. It has an approximate area of 2000 square meters, offering their services to more than 20 research groups. It is part of the Universidad Miguel Hernández (UMH) Animal Experimentation Service.
The RMG technicians do a complete breeding management of the mice colonies, registering all the data in a special designed database. The database is also used for communicating with the researches. In that way the researches can give instructions and ask for services, and our technicians accomplish more than a 1.000 orders per week.
All the work carried out by the Animal Facility complies with both national and EU legislation – Spanish Royal Decree RD53/2013 and EU Directive 2010/63/UE – for the protection of animals used for research experimentation and other scientific purposes. Experimental procedures and projects are reviewed and evaluated by an external Research Ethics and Animal Welfare Committee, as well as by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC). The animals are handled by specialized and accredited personnel according to the Orden ECC/566/2015.
AREAS– The animal facility includes the following areas:
Breeding and maintenance of genetically modified mouse strains: It houses about 350 genetically modified mouse strains.
Wild type mice area: It produces wild type mice, and gestational age defined female mice from several different mouse strains (inbred/outbred).
Quarantine: The mice coming from other facilities are housed in this area, allowing scientific exchange with other institutions. To enter into the SPF barrier facility, rederivation by embryo transfer, and a health testing is performed, to assure that the health status of the new animals reach our standards.
Transgenic and cryopreservation laboratory: Where the rederivations and other mouse assisted reproduction procedures, such as IVF and freezing of sperm and embryos, are performed.
Experimental zone: It has two areas of animal stocking, and comprehensive equipment for experiments involving surgery and behavioural studies within the barrier area.
Washing and sterilization area: Centralized washing, preparation, and sterilization of all materials used in the animal house.
SERVICES
Services offered:
- Housing and complete breeding management of genetically modified mouse strains.
- Gestational age defined females, postnatal and adult mice from Hsd:ICR, C57BL6/J, and FVB/NHsd strains.
- Tissue sampling for genotyping.
- Tissue sampling for health monitoring.
- Training and assistance in the use of the experimental zone area.
- Import and export of genetically modified mouse strains (live mice and frozen germplasm).
- Rederivation by aseptic embryo transfer to produce SPF mice.
- Sperm and embryo cryopreservation for archiving genetically modified mouse strains.
- In vitro Fertilization (sperm cryorecovery / producing experimental groups / strains rescue or expansion).
- Zygote microinjection (DNA or RNA).
