Abstract
This compilation of techniques for non–histology-based methods of phenotyping mutant mice comes from members of the EUMORPHIA consortium. It is an excellent companion to the text What's Wrong with my Mouse: Behavioral Phenotyping of Transgenic and Knockout Mice, by J. Crawley (Wiley-Liss, New York, 2000). Its particular value stems from both its detail and its range of information. Each chapter in the book is dedicated to a particular system: acoustic, ocular, cartilage and bone, metabolic and endocrine, neurologic (including behavior and nociception), cardiovascular, and immune (including host–pathogen interactions, general immunology, and allergy). In addition, this book addresses some issues relevant to clinical chemistries and gene expression profiling. Each chapter is well organized, containing various histories on relevant models for human disease as well as genetic disorders common to that system in specific mouse strains and disease models. Each chapter has detailed descriptions and protocols from the European Mouse Phenotyping Resource for Standardized Screens (EMPReSS), which has more than 150 standard operating procedures for a system-based evaluation of mouse phenotypes (all available online). In general, the book is well written, and figures and illustrations are usually understandable and helpful. Researchers using mutant mice will gain the greatest benefit from this text, as it lays out primary, secondary, and tertiary tests to evaluate sensory and functional modalities, and it gives practical information on a host of techniques, specific protocols, and potential pitfalls.
In addition to developing a hierarchical approach to evaluating mutant mice, many chapters also identify emerging techniques, sources of equipment, and valuable references. While favoring the EUMORPHIA consortium Web site and resources, this book also gives additional published and Internet-based sources for those trying to evaluate mutant mice (although some Web addresses seem to have changed or become inactive, while others are not in English). This book will be of most value to researchers working with genetically engineered mice and, to some extent, veterinarians and pathologists working with these researchers.