Mouse Surgery Transplantation and Physiology Core
MR4 Room 2040
The Mouse Surgery Core provides the following low-cost surgical, transplantation, and physiology services to University of Virginia investigators only:
Currently Available Services:
- Hemodynamic Studies
This service is to measure blood pressure in the common carotid artery, in the chamber of left ventricle and/or right ventricle of mouse, through a Millar Catheter.
- Mouse and Rat Carotid Artery Injury
Common carotid artery will be injured by a spring wire (mouse) or a balloon catheter (rat). It is most common animal model to study the mechanisms of restenosis.
- Mouse and Rat Carotid Artery Ligation
The Left Common carotid artery will be ligated proximal to the superficial and internal carotid artery bifurcation in this model of vascular injury.
- Transverse Aortic Constriction (Aortic banding)
The transverse aorta will be constricted by tying a 7-0 silk suture around the vessel over a blunted 28-gauge needle. The needle will be removed, which restore the lumen to the size of the 28-gauge needle, and create acute left ventricle pressure overload. This model can be used for the study of cardiac.
- Abdominal A-V Shunt
(model of volume-overload induced heart failure) - The descending aorta isolated and clamped below the renal arteries and above the iliac aortic bifurcation. The aorta is punctured through the adjacent wall and into the inferior vena cava with a 26-gauge needle. The needle is removed fully, and the initial aortic entry puncture point closed with 11-0 suture. The clamps are removed after 10-20 s to insure proper drying, and the patency of the shunt verified visually by mixing of arterial and venous blood. This method of induction of volume-overload cardiac hypertrophy has been shown to produce an "eccentric" form of cardiac hypertrophy that is characterized by normal wall thickness, a disproportionately large increase in heart chamber volume.
- Mouse Femoral Artery Injury
Femoral artery will be injured by a spring wire through a cut on epigastric branch. This model can be done bilaterally and results in substantial intimal hyperplasia in mice without apoE or LDLR knockout.
- Aortic Pinning
Mouse aorta will be dissected out from the aortic arch to iliac artery (5 mm from bifurcation), cut open longitudinally, and pinned flat on silicone-coated dishes. Currently staining and imaging will need to be done by requestor.
Other Surgical Models:
- Bilateral Nephrectomy - $65
Adult Rat; right and left kidney vessel bundles are ligated at the pelvis and both kidneys are excised. This is a model of acute renal failure.
- 5/6 Nephrectomy - $100
Any age mouse or rat; this procedure involves the removal of 1/3 of one kidney from each pole during the initial surgery. A second surgery is performed one week later to remove the opposite kidney. This is a common model of progressive renal failure.
- Ovariectomy - $35
Mouse or rat; a single dorsal skin incision is made, the ovaries are visualized by separating the muscles of the abdominal wall on each side of the spine. The fallopian tubes are crushed and ovaries are excised and removed.
- Unilateral Nephrectomy - $35
Any age mouse or rat; the right kidney vessel bundle and ureter are ligated at the pelvis and the kidney is excised through a flank incision leaving the adrenal gland intact and in place unless requested otherwise.
- Osmotic/Infusion Pump Implantation - $35
Mouse or rat; a skin incision is made behind the neck and the osmotic pump is implanted in a pocket formed by tunneling subcutaneously along the back. Pumps must be supplied by the investigator.
- Unilateral Ureteral Obstruction (UUO) - $35
Any age mouse or rat; the left ureter is ligated mid-way between the kidney and the bladder via a flank incision.
- Persistent Partial Ureteral Obstruction (PPO) - $65
Any age mouse or rat; a flank incision is made. The left ureter is constricted distal to the ureteral pelvic junction over a wire template which is then removed. The model is variable and approximately 70% of the ureters can be expected to retain patency after 28 days.
- Obstruction Relief (PPO/Rel) - $65
5 – 10 days following PPO described above a second surgery is performed. Using an abdominal incision, the ureteral obstruction is removed.
Due to current constraints/resources, we are not fully able to provide the below services but if you are interested in the Core offering these in the future, please contact Bobi Thornhill at
BAT6D@virginia.edu to discuss. Based on number of requests priority will be determined along with available funding. Also, if you have other surgical needs not listed, please do not hesitate to ask and again we will prioritize as needed.
Future Planning:
- Mouse Heart Transplant
The heart of donor will be transplanted heterotopically into the abdomen of recipient. It is a very useful animal model for immune rejection studies.
- Mouse Aorta Transplant
The thoracic aorta of donor will be transplanted heterotopically into the abdominal aorta of recipient. This model is useful for transplanted atherosclerosis, chronic rejection and atherosclerotic lesion regression studies.
- Mouse Model of Vein Graft Disease
Autologous vein (external jugular vein) or Inferior vena cava of donor will be grafted into the infrarenal abdominal aorta by end-to-end anastomosis. It is useful model to study the mechanisms of vein graft disease (intimal hyperplasia).
In order to track and expedite your needs, please use the request service button below. This will give you the opportunity to view what is currently in the queue and to place your order. If you need immediate assistance or need to discuss a procedure, please select Call Back in the services request drop-down and then any comments and we will be notified via email and contact you as soon as possible.
