Resource centre funded
A UK medical research charity, the Wellcome Trust, is putting £1.5 million into the European Xenopus Resource Centre, creating a central repository of embryo lines for developmental and cell biologists across Europe.
The money is going to University of Portsmouth, UK, allowing researchers there to breed and supply both genetically altered and wild-type animals. Developmental biologists will be able to obtain Xenopus lines more efficiently ensuring that the number of embryos stored and Xenopus bred is kept to a minimum. Xenopus, the clawed frog, is a major model organism for studying cell replication and vertebrate development.
Matt Guille, head of the new centre, said, “There is currently no centre in either Europe or the US, which means that it can be difficult for researchers to obtain embryo lines. The centre will allow embryo lines for Xenopus frogs to be stored in one place, making distribution more efficient and limiting the number of lines, and therefore the number of frogs, created.”
The centre will enable researchers in the field to stick to the 3Rs principles of reduction, refinement and replacement of animals in scientific and medical research, and ensure they are all working on defined genetic lines.
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