June 2024 Newsletter
Frog Availability Update
We are pleased to provide the latest updates on the availability of various frog species in our facility:
- Xenopus laevis: Male frogs are currently in stock. Female frogs are available in very limited numbers; however, we anticipate increased availability beginning in September.
The growing batches at the moment are:
~112 Young Females available potentially in September/October 2024 at the earliest
~ 675 unsexed Juveniles available potentially in February/March 2025 at the earliest.
(We select animals suitable for shipment carefully and keep the rest for oocytes, testes etc.. So if 30% of this group are good shipment females that will be around 200 available to users as live animals)
- Trop Male Frogs: Currently available.
- Trop Female Frogs: Currently available.
For detailed information or specific requests, please contact our Project Coordinator magdalena.moszynska@port.ac.uk
IDEXX Services and Health Monitoring
Some animal units are requesting quite comprehensive pathogen testing of frogs before they are sent. Please be advised that IDEXX services will now be invoiced separately. For comprehensive details regarding pricing and available services, kindly contact magdalena.moszynska@port.ac.uk. We do charge for taking the samples for testing, which is additional to the IDEXX cost.
With the Garner lab at IOZ we have been testing different approaches to monitoring colony health. Whilst the data still await peer review, they show that monitoring a combination of water and sludge is much more effective than swabbing animals, at least for detecting Bd. As well as being more effective in itself, this obviously uses far less resource than current approaches and has the potential to keep the frog models affordable.
Export Health Certificates (EHC) Update
We have new information regarding Export Health Certificates (EHC). Please ensure you review the latest guidelines available in your country to comply with current export regulations. If there are no certificates available to apply for, please contact your government agency to find out what information they require to produce such a certificate to facilitate shipments of live animals to your country. We can then pass this on to the relevant UK Government department. No document can be signed by the official vet (OV) unless it has been issued by the UK government.
The total cost of the OV providing an EHC is £545 (VAT incl.).
We can now apply for an Export Health certificate (EHC) specifically for amphibia for the following countries:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- France
- Ireland
- Montserrat
- Northern Ireland
- Poland
- South Africa
- Spain
- Sweden
You do not need an import permit for shipments to Germany, Italy or Israel. We will, however, need to obtain a Vet Certificate signed by our NVS (Named Veterinary Surgeon); as well as to provide the following documents: Journey Declaration, Customs Invoice, and Packing List.
Introduction of New Frog Lines
We are excited to introduce two new frog X. tropicalis lines to our research community:
- COPB1 Heterozygous Knockout (KO)
- GRIA1 Heterozygous Knockout (KO)
These lines will be available very soon, please call for exact dates. Growing up now is an inducible cas9 line in X. laevis, we’re working on getting it into X. tropicalis.
Line Submissions and Cryopreservation
For Biosecurity reasons we are only taking in lines as sperm and then generating “clean” animals for the colonies or, for those that are not likely to have wide use, keeping them only as frozen sperm samples. If you have any unsubmitted lines, we kindly request that you arrange to send us fresh chilled sperm (X. laevis) at your earliest convenience. We can arrange to freeze sperm down at your site for X. tropicalis if you do not have that method up and running. It is a great deal of work for you to make lines and a drain on the community if they are lost. For lines that are unpublished you are welcome to put restrictions on their distribution.
Visiting Researchers
We extend a warm welcome to visiting researchers, currently most are coming to produce egg extracts and make crispant or base edited animals, but you are welcome to come and perform any experiments we can support. To ensure availability and proper accommodation, please schedule your visits in advance.
Welfare Initiatives and Webinars
We are pleased to highlight Rue’s welfare initiative, which focuses on the well-being of our research animals. Additionally, we encourage you to participate in the NC3Rs/RSPCA webinar, which will provide valuable insights into animal welfare in research. Further details and registration information are available on our website.
Conference Participation
Annie and Matt will be at the Amphiclub soon, please do take a few minutes to feed back on what we can do to enhance your research.
We can’t wait to see you in Portsmouth, the EXRC will host the next International Xenopus Conference in 2025.
Save the Date: 17-21 August 2025 (Sunday to Thursday)
We are doing our very best to keep this conference affordable and hope to be able to welcome many young scientists to the frog research community.
Follow Us on Instagram
Stay connected with us through Instagram! Follow @xenopusresource, our account for the latest updates, behind-the-scenes content, and more. Engage with our posts and stories to stay informed about our activities and initiatives.
Thank you for your continued support and engagement. Should you have any questions or require further information, please do not hesitate to contact us.
We all hope your experiments go well,
The EXRC team
