The Wellcome Trust has funded a repository for mouse pigmentary mutants under the direction of Dr. Lynn Lamoreux in association with Dr. Jim Womack, Distinguished Professor, and Dr. Richard Ermel, Director of Laboratory Animal Research and Resources, at the College of Veterinary Medicine, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas. The Mouse Pigmentary Mutant Repository is collaborative with The Wellcome Trust Functional Genomics Cell Bank, which is maintained at St George's Hospital Medical School, London, Director, Dr. Elena Sviderskaya, in association with Professor Dorothy Bennett's research group in the Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology.
The pigmentary mutant repository specializes in maintaining mouse mutations congenic with C57BL/6J and in some cases with JU/Ct/Lm, a strain on which the phenotypes are differently expressed.
The mouse repository freely supplies mice to researchers with valid Animal Use Protocols. To enquire about obtaining mutant mice, or for any other information not available in these pages, please contact the Director: Dr. Lynn Lamoreux at
Time permitting, Dr Lamoreux is prepared to consider collaborative projects with the users.
Among the significant aspects of this colony are the following: 1. We have many of the mutants that are responsible for the normal development of a physiological system and the integration of that system into the development of the entire body; 2. We have many of these in reciprocal combinations on the same genetic background; 3. All our mutants are maintained on the same genetic background as each other and also on the genetic background selected by NIH for the trans-NIH mouse initiative (C57BL/6J); 4. Additionally, we have several of these on a contrasting inbred strain where they are differently expressed.
All alleles are available congenic with, coisogenic with or in late stages of backcrossing onto C57BL/6J. The use of inbred congenic stocks, wherever possible, is highly recommended because this serves as a control that makes your work directly comparable with the work of others in the field. (reference my paper and the Ito paper here)
EUMELANIN/PHEOMELANIN
Loci that determine whether the hair follicle pigment cells (melanocytes) produce yellow pheomelanin pigment or nonyellow eumelanin pigment.
MELANOGENIC PATHWAY/ALBINISM
Genes that are necessary for normal melanogenesis
These loci influence normal migration, replication, differentiation (apoptosis) of pigment cells from the neural crest during embryogenesis. Spotting phenotype and pleiotropic effects differ on the different inbred backgrounds.
Causes of pigment loss differ. Causes include apoptosis.
The Pigmentary Mutant Mouse Repository is funded by The Wellcome Trust Functional Genomics Development Initiative
