Importing genetically altered animals: ensuring quality

Area of Science:

• Laboratory animal science
• Research reproducibility
• Biomedical research

Background:

• Reproducibility in animal research depends on consistent animal quality.
• Transferring animal models between researchers risks compromising their integrity and documentation.
• Maintaining genetic, health, and environmental standards is essential for reliable phenotypes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To outline key quality aspects for sharing rodent research models.
• To highlight the role of biological material repositories in maintaining animal quality.
• To emphasize the importance of quality control in all biological material exchanges.

Main Methods:

• Review of critical quality parameters for laboratory animals.
• Discussion of best practices for sharing rodent models.
• Examination of the function of biological material repositories.

Main Results:

• Identified essential quality attributes to verify when sharing rodent models.
• Demonstrated the supportive role of repositories in ensuring animal quality continuity.
• Extended the concept of quality and repository function to all biological material sharing.

Conclusions:

• Rigorous quality management of laboratory animals is vital for research reproducibility.
• Repositories are key facilitators in maintaining the integrity of shared animal models.
• Standardized quality assurance is necessary across all biological material sharing networks.