Multi-Organ Collection from Mouse Models for Aging Studies

Aging is a systemic and multifactorial biological process that progressively affects nearly all organs and tissues, leading to structural, cellular, and molecular alterations. This protocol outlines a standardized and reproducible approach for evaluating age-related anatomical and morphological changes in mice through comprehensive organ collection for subsequent histological and molecular analyses. Using young (2-3 months old) and aged (20-24 months old) mice, we detail step-by-step procedures for gross anatomical dissection and systematic harvesting of major organs for downstream sectioning, histological staining, and microscopic evaluation. The protocol enables the collection of a broad range of organs and tissues (including the brain, eyes, esophagus, thymus, heart, aorta, lungs, lymph nodes, liver, pancreas, stomach, small intestine, colon, spleen, kidney, bladder, skin, skeletal muscle, bone, and adipose tissue) from a single animal. By maximizing data yield per subject, this workflow supports ethical animal use through reduction, enhances reproducibility across studies, and facilitates integrative analyses of organismal aging.