title: The mouse as a model for understanding chronic diseases of aging: the histopathologic basis of aging in inbred mice.
abstract: Inbred mice provide a unique tool to study aging populations because of the genetic homogeneity within an inbred strain, their short life span, and the tools for analysis which are available. A large-scale longitudinal and cross-sectional aging study was conducted on 30 inbred strains to determine, using histopathology, the type and diversity of diseases mice develop as they age. These data provide tools that when linked with modern in silico genetic mapping tools, can begin to unravel the complex genetics of many of the common chronic diseases associated with aging in humans and other mammals. In addition, novel disease models were discovered in some strains, such as rhabdomyosarcoma in old A/J mice, to diseases affecting many but not all strains including pseudoxanthoma elasticum, pulmonary adenoma, alopecia areata, and many others. This extensive data set is now available online and provides a useful tool to help better understand strain-specific background diseases that can complicate interpretation of genetically engineered mice and other manipulatable mouse studies that utilize these strains.
authors.affiliation: The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, ME, USA.
authors.forename: John P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Sundberg
authors.forename: Annerose
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Berndt
authors.forename: Beth A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Sundberg
authors.forename: Kathleen A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: Victoria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Kennedy
authors.forename: Roderick
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bronson
authors.forename: Rong
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.forename: Beverly
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Paigen
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Harrison
authors.forename: Paul N
authors.initials: PN
authors.lastname: Schofield