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Volume 48 Issue 6, June 2019

C57BL/6: the same, but different

The C57BL/6 mouse has long been a popular choice in preclinical research. But ‘Black 6’ mice are not all the same–substrains maintained by different mouse providers have subtle genetics differences, the result of genetic drift over time as populations are bred in isolation. Those differences between substrains of C57BL/6 mice can have important implications for research outcomes that are increasingly being recognized and systematically evaluated.

See Johanna Åhlgren and Vootele Voikar

Cover design: Erin Dewalt

Volume 48 Issue 6

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  • Researchers can’t sit their laboratory mice or fruit flies down and ask them how they’re feeling or why they’re behaving in a particular way. Instead, humans are left to observe and interpret the various clues their animals provide. Can machines help?

    • Ellen P. Neff
    Technology Feature
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  • In this study, Åhlgren and Voikar demonstrate that C57BL/6N and C57BL/6J mice from different vendors show substantial behavioral differences, although they are derived from the same strain. These results suggest that different mouse strains and substrains should be included in experiments to address the lack of reproducibility.

    • Johanna Åhlgren
    • Vootele Voikar
    Article
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