Online tools for understanding rat physiology

Abstract

Rat models have been used to investigate physiological and pathophysiological mechanisms for decades. With the availability of the rat genome and other online resources, tools to identify rat models that mimic human disease are an important step in translational research. Despite the large number of papers published each year using rat models, integrating this information remains a problem. Resources for the rat genome are continuing to grow rapidly, while resources providing access to rat phenotype data are just emerging. An overview of rat models of disease, tools to characterize strain by phenotype and genotype, and steps being taken to integrate rat physiological data is presented in this article. Integrating functional and physiological data with the rat genome will build a solid research platform to facilitate innovative studies to unravel the mechanisms resulting in disease.

Figure 1:

Cumulative number of publications available in PubMed for Rattus norvegicus (light gray bars) and Mus musculus (dark gray bars) per decade.

Figure 2:

Laboratory rat models are used as disease models, to investigate the physiological and pathophysiological mechanisms leading to traits or phenotypes, to identify genes involved in disease, and sequence variants that can result in disease or increased disease risk.

Figure 3:

The PhysGen PGA website provides access to strain and phenotype data for more than 70 strains. Users can query by phenotype or strain. Phenotype queries (lower left) return data for all strains for a single phenotype. Strain profile data for a particular strain across all phenotypes (lower right).

Figure 4:

The RGD provides entryways to a wide variety of genetic, genomic, phenotype and strain information. Physiologist can access data through the ‘Phenotypes & Models’ portal providing entry to a new phenotype mining tool (middle left), a strain search (lower left), and a resource for strain availability (lower right).