Differences in survival among germfree mice following transfer to a conventional colony.
Sex and strain differences in survival were studied in 7-9 month old germfree mice following transfer to a conventional colony. One outbred and three inbred strains were observed. All outbred CD-1 mice survived transfer and in 4 months increased their weight by 50%. The majority of inbred mice survived 7 months after transfer. Sex differences in survival were evident throughout the experimental period and were most marked 7 months after transfer. An unexpected new finding was the viability of the male sex in germfree mice after transfer. Possible explanations are considered.
D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D005856:Germ-Free Life; D008136:Longevity; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains / Q000276:immunology*; D012737:Sex Factors