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It’s exciting to hear about research breakthroughs aimed at improving human health. These discoveries often begin with meticulously designed and conducted basic science that requires trusted and reliable biological resources.
NIA is working to expand the development and use of novel research methods and models that enable scientists to use complementary, non-animal-based approaches — such as computational modeling and predictive technologies — to study biological functions and human disease. Still, cell cultures, tissue samples, and other laboratory resources remain crucial to many researchers in aging biology. These include:
- Aging Cell Repository: The NIA Aging Cell Repository at the Coriell Institute offers a multitude of human and animal cell lines. Samples are available in a variety of age ranges, including those derived from humans ages 90 and older, as well as samples representing aging-related disorders and diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. These cell cultures are only distributed to professionals who are associated with recognized research, medical, educational, or industrial organizations engaged in health-related research or health care delivery. Fees and shipping costs may apply.
- Tissue banks: A wide variety of fixed and frozen tissue samples and tissue microarrays are available at no cost to investigators engaged in aging research at academic and nonprofit research institutions. Note that an active aging-related grant is not required to access these resources. Requests for tissue can be submitted using the Aged Rodent Tissue Bank and Nonhuman Primate Tissue Bank
- Rodents: Aged mice and rats are available at no cost to all investigators with an active aging-related grant from NIH, other federal government agencies, or U.S.-based private foundations that fund aging research. Investigators must register and place their orders through the NIA Rodent Ordering System . Orders are limited to 20 animals per month for NIA-funded grant recipients and 10 animals every other month for those without an NIA award. Please visit the Aged Rodent Colonies website for more information, including the oldest ages available for each strain .
Advantages of NIA resources
By its nature, research on aging typically involves the acquisition of data over an organism’s lifespan or at later stages in life, which can be costly and add years to a study. Through our resources, NIA facilitates aging research that would otherwise be less accessible, more costly, or more time-consuming for investigators, ensuring alignment with NIH animal welfare policies as well as quality.
Reach out to us for customized help
If you’re not sure which resource is right for your study, we’re here to help! Email Jennifer Fox with questions about the NIA Aged Rodent Colonies, and Tiziana Cogliati for help with tissue banks and the Aging Cell Repository.
Research Scientific Resources 2024-04-17T00:00:00Z