The African spiny mouse (Acomys spp.) as an emerging model for development and regeneration

• Published in: Laboratory animals (London) Vol. 52; no. 6; pp. 565 - 576
• Main Authors: Pinheiro, Gonçalo, Prata, Diogo Filipe, Araújo, Inês Maria, Tiscornia, Gustavo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London, England SAGE Publications 01.12.2018
• Subjects: Acomys; Animal Husbandry; animal models; Animals; Biomedical Research; Breeding; high energy diet; Laboratory Animal Science - methods; laboratory animals; low calorie diet; mice; Models, Animal; Murinae - physiology; Organogenesis; pups; Regeneration; laboratory animal welfare; nutrition; ethics and welfare; husbandry; organisms and models; animal model; handling techniques
• ISSN: 0023-6772; 1758-1117; 1758-1117
• DOI: 10.1177/0023677218769921

The African spiny mouse (Acomys spp.) is an emerging animal model with remarkable biological characteristics that make it a subject of interest for a broad range of research fields. Typically a desert species adapted to a low-calorie diet, spiny mice develop diabetes-related symptoms when switched to high-energy diets. Spiny mice undergo relatively long gestation periods and have small litters of highly developed pups, making them an adequate model for late organogenesis and perinatal biology. Recently, they have been shown to have remarkable healing and regeneration capabilities, which make them unique among mammals. In this work, we describe our experience in housing a colony of African spiny mice and cover all basic aspects of feeding, maintenance and breeding for research purposes.