Gene editing and the 3Rs: 20 years of pioneering better science
As part of our 20-year anniversary celebrations our article published in the Genetics Society magazine explores the evolving relationship between genetic modification and the 3Rs over the past two decades.
When we were founded in 2004, Cre-Lox recombination was the predominant technique for creating genetically altered (GA) animals. The advent of CRISPR-Cas9 in 2013 changed the landscape of genetic modification, presenting new opportunities for scientific discovery alongside new 3Rs considerations.
We have been funding innovations to embed the 3Rs in the creation and care of GA animals since we were founded. From one of our first Project grants in 2005 to refine GA mouse models of chronic and degenerative diseases by identifying early behavioural changes in GA mice indicative of reduced welfare, to the creation of stem-cell based gastruloid techniques now being used to replace thousands of GA mice in experiments to study the early embryo. Our resources help scientists and technicians to reduce and refine the use of GA animals in research – from our breeding and colony management resource launched to support the community through unprecedented challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, to guidance published earlier this year on setting up a new GA mouse colony that helps scientists take into account strain breeding characteristics and experimental design.
Read the article in the Genetics Society magazine: issue 90, pages 26-29.