Comparing Deleterious Mutation Load Between Classical Inbred Mice and Wild-Caught Mice

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

8-9-2024

Keywords

JMG

JAX Location

In: Student Reports, Summer 2024, The Jackson Laboratory

Abstract

Inbred strains of the house mouse, Mus musculus, are widely used in biological research for studying human disease (1). However, the extreme inbreeding of these strains raises concerns about the deleterious impact it may have in the genomes. In contrast, wild mice harbor greater genetic variation, making their genomes more representative of human genetic diversity (2-3). The aim of this project is to compare inbred mice genomes with wild-caught mice genomes to assess how their deleterious mutation load differs. We predicted that the inbred strains would have more mildly deleterious variants than wild mice, as the lack of natural selection would allow slightly harmful mutations to accumulate (4). We utilized variant effect predictor tools, calculated allele frequencies, and applied conservation scores to both groups, finding overall support for our prediction. Based on these findings, future research should be conducted to better understand the differences between inbred and wild mice, which would have implications for the use of mice in research and the importance of genetic diversity.

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