Collaborative Cross to provide powerful resource for mouse model researchers...( Projects like this are a big part of ...)

Several universities and institutions, including The Jackson Laboratory, the University of Tennessee and the University of North Carolina, are participating in the effort, which Johnson hopes continues to gain momentum over the next several months. Already, researchers around the world have expressed significant interest and Jackson Lab has provided the parental strains of mice.

The project represents a significant departure from previous approaches and researchers say is necessary to take the next step in developing a community resource for understanding the genetic and environmental complexity of human diseases.

"For the last 30 years it has been all right to study one gene at a time, but we realize that we've gone as far as we can with that approach," Johnson said. "So this is the only way to accomplish what we're setting out to do now. When we're done, we will have reduced genome sections to small enough pieces that only one to five genes are possible candidates to control a specific trait."

Controlling environmental variables will play a huge role in enabling researchers to identify and potentially diagnose and treat an assortment of chronic human conditions, including cancer, pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases, obesity, diabetes, behavioral disorders and neurodegenerative diseases.

Another component of the project will be exposure biology, which ultimately attempts to explain why some people are more susceptible to toxins or other insults than others. Johnson also expects the Collaborative Cross to attract guest researchers who will be provided with laboratory space to work on special projects that have been approved by an external review board. The four-member board consists of renowned researchers fr
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Contact: Ron Walli
wallira@ornl.gov
865-576-0226
DOE/Oak Ridge National Laboratory
22-Sep-2005