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Review
. 2025 Dec 10;37(1):10.
doi: 10.1007/s00335-025-10174-4.

A quality framework for cryopreserved rodent disease models: INFRAFRONTIER quality principles in EMMA archiving and distribution

Hilke Ehlich  1 , Andrew Blease  2 , Reva Biju  2 , Montse Gustems  3 , Fei Song  3 , Sabine Fessele  3 , Marzia Massimi  4 , Konstantinos Bozonelos  5 , Vasileios Ntafis  5 , Anniina E Hiltunen  6 , Susan Marschall  7 , Claudia Stoeger  7 , Zuzana Khorshidi  8 , Abdelmalek Ziadi  9 , Karine Jambou  9 , Arsenio Armagno  4 , Ferdinando Scavizzi  4 , Marcello Raspa  4 , Julia Fernandez  10   11 , María Jesús Del Hierro  10 , Abdelkader Ayadi  12 , Joelle Pensavalle  12 , Géraldine Prevost  12 , Lucie Dufková  13 , Michaela Krupkova  13 , Petr Nickl  13 , Paul Krimpenfort  14 , Marieke van de Ven  15 , Jos Jonkers  14 , Gema Valera Vázquez  3 , Michael Raess  3 , Johannes Beckers  16   3   7   17 , Anna Moles  4 , Maik Dahlhoff  18 , Lluis Montoliu  10   11 , Yann Hérault  12 , Reetta Hinttala  6 , Dimitris L Kontoyiannis  5 , Radislav Sedlacek  13 , Martin Hrabě de Angelis  16   7   17 , Auke A Boersma #  19 , Rafaele Matteoni #  4
Affiliations
Review

A quality framework for cryopreserved rodent disease models: INFRAFRONTIER quality principles in EMMA archiving and distribution

Hilke Ehlich et al. Mamm Genome. .

Abstract

Ensuring the quality and reproducibility of biological resources is essential for advancing biomedical research and upholding animal welfare standards. The European Mouse Mutant Archive (EMMA), part of the INFRAFRONTIER research infrastructure, plays a key role in this effort by cryopreserving scientifically validated mutant mouse and rat strains and making them accessible to the global scientific community. To further enhance its processes and promote transparency, INFRAFRONTIER/EMMA has developed a set of ten Quality Principles specifically tailored to the unique requirements of cryopreserved rodent mutant strains. These principles guide EMMA's workflows by providing a structured yet flexible quality framework across its distributed nodes. They encompass both general standards-such as adherence to the 3Rs (Replace, Reduce, Refine), staff competence, and continuous improvement-and more specific areas including scientific evaluation, data curation, and intellectual property rights. Each principle is presented with contextual background, defined requirements, practical recommendations, and key references. This initiative aims to strengthen the reliability, ethical integrity, and reproducibility of preclinical research resources.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Conflict of interest: The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Schematic representation of the EMMA workflow, illustrating the application of the 10 EMMA Quality Principles in the procedures for archiving and distribution of mutant rodent strains. As detailed in the text, these principles guide both the deposition of mutant strains and the global distribution to the scientific community. Applicable QPs are displayed as green boxes with QP number and keyword
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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