Part 3
Projects & Landmarks
Health & Food / Landmark

INFRAFRONTIER

European Research Infrastructure for the generation, phenotyping, archiving and distribution of mouse disease models

A collection of services on mouse models to unravel the role of gene function in human health and disease

description

The European Research Infrastructure for the generation, phenotyping, archiving and distribution of mouse disease models (INFRAFRONTIER) is providing the biomedical research community with the tools needed to study the systemic effects of genetic alterations to unravel the role of gene function in human health and disease. By offering access to a unique collection of mouse models and research tools and associated data, and to state-of-the-art technologies for mouse model development and phenotype analyses, INFRAFRONTIER enhances medical research by promoting studies that lead to breakthrough discoveries in cancer, metabolic and cardiovascular diseases, lung diseases, infectious diseases and the group of rare diseases, global threats to our socio-economic wellbeing.

The INFRAFRONTIER GmbH was established in April 2013. The application for the INFRAFRONTIER ERIC is currently under preparation in an Inter-Ministry Working Group.

activity

In basic biomedical research the identification of the genetic bases for human disease is a fundamental goal and the investigation of gene function through mouse mutants and phenotyping is a central element in achieving this goal. The disease models available from INFRAFRONTIER can be used to address basic and fundamental scientific questions about in vivo gene function and may further our understanding of disease genetics. The number of human genetic studies has increased over the last years and a great opportunity now exists to validate possible disease candidates and pathways in human using mouse models. Overall, the mouse is widely regarded as the best model system for developing an understanding for human biology.

The INFRAFRONTIER RI is providing open access to international resources for mouse models, data, scientific platforms and services to study the functional role of the genome in human health and disease and supports the global user community in biomedical research. INFRAFRONTIER provides access to: i) mouse disease model generation using different genetic resources and technologies; ii) archiving and distributing of scientifically valuable mouse strains through the European Mouse Mutant Archive (EMMA), the third largest mouse repository worldwide and integral component of INFRAFRONTIER; iii) whole-organism, systemic analysis of genotype-phenotype interactions using cutting-edge analytical and diagnostic methodology in the INFRAFRONTIER mouse clinics. INFRAFRONTIER supports a bottom-up approach for individual scientists and research groups and provides top-down capacities for large-scale international initiatives such as the International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium (IMPC).

In addition, INFRAFRONTIER offers a wide range of state-of-the-art training opportunities and consulting services. Training courses cover hands on cryopreservation courses that are offered by EMMA partners for many years. Mouse clinics of INFRAFRONTIER offer outstanding training opportunities in first-line mouse phenotyping as well as specialised phenotyping courses.

impact

In addition to the wide use to focus on basic and fundamental scientific questions in human health and disease, mouse models are exploited for addressing more applied questions ranging from the identification and validation of novel drug targets to the analysis of drug action and side effects and safety and efficacy testing of potential drugs. Drug companies exploit phenotype results from mouse models at multiple key decision points during pre-clinical research, including target and compound selection but also for avoiding unwanted target liabilities that could lead to failures later on in the clinic.

Furthermore, genetically engineered mouse models are successfully used for testing treatment regimes in co-clinical trials in mouse and humans contributing to the rational design of clinical trials. By offering open access to centralised and sustainable gold-standard resources, INFRAFRONTIER reduces duplication of efforts thereby contributes to cost efficiency, reduction of animal use, and data reproducibility.

type
distributed
legal status
GmbH, 2013
political support
lead country
DE
members countries
CZ, EL, FI, FR
member entities
EMBL
The full list of research institutions involved must be found in the website of the RI
timeline
Roadmap Entry
2006
Preparation Phase
2008-2012
Implementation/Construction Phase
2010-2013
Operation Start
2013
estimated costs
capital value
180 M€
design
Not Available
preparation
Not Available
construction
Not Available
operation
80 M€/year
headquarters

INFRAFRONTIER GmbH
Munich, Germany