The UK DRI's Animal Models Programme (AMP) is led by Group Leader Dr Frances Wiseman and based between the Mary Lyon Centre at MRC Harwell and the UK DRI at UCL. Dr Wiseman provides expert advice to the UK DRI in mouse genetics, line creation and phenotyping. Through this, the AMP supports UK DRI Group Leaders and Emerging Leaders with the legal and ethical aspects of working with animals and oversees Institute-level implementations of animal research policy.
The programme supports hypothesis-driven targeted in vivo studies based on cutting-edge human dementia research. We use a multidisciplinary approach including integration and alignment with alternative research methods and programmes within the Institute.
The programme is designed to:
- Generate novel genetically altered mouse models to facilitate in vivo dementia research via the Mouse Models for Dementia Research (MMDR) funding programme. These new models leverage knowledge and expertise from within the Institute, and facilitate collaborative research between scientists to address key questions. The scheme aims to create highly impactful new mouse models for distribution to the wider research community, drawing on UK DRI expertise.
- Develop integrated behavioural, sensory and motor phenotyping capacity at the MRC Mary Lyon Centre, so that a broad range of cognitive and physiological changes experienced by people who have dementia can be studied and the efficacy of new therapies tested.
- Generate reference longitudinal data sets of commonly used mouse models of dementia-causing diseases to further facilitate the testing of new therapies and fundamental research.
- Support rigorous and high-value in vivo dementia research across the Institute and the wider research landscape by enabling the use of robust genetics, husbandry and experimental design principles, including the development of governance and oversight polices and procedures.
The team also co-ordinate the UK DRI 3Rs (Replacement, Reduction and Refinement) Committee, which has a remit to facilitate best practise across the Institute and ensure a culture of care in liaison with initiatives across the UK DRI partner universities. This group organises an annual educational event and dissemination of improvements in ways of working.
Credit: Understanding Animal Research
Collaborators
Read our publication!
In 2022, the UK DRI convened a workshop with Dementia’s Platform UK, bringing together key clinical and pre-clinical experts from diverse, multidisciplinary, diverse (sex, geography and career stage), cross-institute groups working on vascular cognitive impairment. The published paper is a summary of the discussions that took place at this workshop, addressing important points on vascular models, reproducibility, clinical features of vascular cognitive impairment and corresponding assessments in models, human pathology, bioinformatics approaches, and data sharing.
