title: Building for the future: essential infrastructure for rodent ageing studies.
abstract: When planning ageing research using rodent models, the logistics of supply, long term housing and infrastructure provision are important factors to take into consideration. These issues need to be prioritised to ensure they meet the requirements of experiments which potentially will not be completed for several years. Although these issues are not unique to this discipline, the longevity of experiments and indeed the animals, requires a high level of consistency and sustainability to be maintained throughout lengthy periods of time. Moreover, the need to access aged stock or material for more immediate experiments poses many issues for the completion of pilot studies and/or short term intervention studies on older models. In this article, we highlight the increasing demand for ageing research, the resources and infrastructure involved, and the need for large-scale collaborative programmes to advance studies in both a timely and a cost-effective way.
authors.affiliation: Mary Lyon Centre, MRC Harwell, Harwell Campus, Oxon, OX11 0RD, UK.
authors.forename: Sara E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Wells
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology and Metabolism, The Medical School, Beech Hill Road, Sheffield, S10 2RX, UK. i.bellantuono@sheffield.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Ilaria
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Bellantuono
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D051381:Rats; D012377:Rodentia