LAMRI

• Prof. Bojan Polić, MD, PhD
  • E-mail: bojan.polic@uniri.hr
  • Phone: 051 651 206 
• Assoc. Prof. Felix Wensveen, PhD
  • E-mail: felix.wensveen@uniri.hr
  • Phone: 051 651 171 
• Asst. Prof. Ilija Brizić, PhD
  • E-mail: ilija.brizic@uniri.hr
  • Phone: 051 651 252

Service description

Breeding laboratory mice

Service cost

• for Faculty users: EUR 1.73 / cage / week  
• for external users: EUR 3.45 / cage / week

Since its foundation, the Faculty of Medicine has been developing scientific research and experimental work on laboratory animals. The rapid development of immunology at the Faculty and the first kidney transplant in the former state (1971) significantly increased the need to use experimental animals in research. Considering this and the need for higher health standards in animal breeding, in 1989, Academician Prof. Daniel Rukavina and his associates built a modern Central Breeding Vivarium within the Faculty campus, which enabled high-quality conventional breeding of laboratory mice and rats. The construction of this Vivarium marked a turning point in scientific research at the Faculty, especially in the fields of immunology, virology and microbiology.

In addition to numerous conventional and congenic mouse strains, the first genetically modified mice began to be acquired in the early 1990s. By the end of the century, the Vivarium had over 25 strains of conventional, congenic and transgenic mice. Increasing standards of quality animal breeding and an increasing number of genetically modified mice with various immune deficiencies encouraged the then administration of the Faculty, headed by Prof. Stipan Jonjić, to upgrade and modernise the Vivarium (2003). It was completed in 2004 and renamed the Laboratory of Mouse Engineering and Breeding Facility (LAMRI). LAMRI is designed as a modern breeding SPF (specific-pathogen-free) vivarium with a strict barrier and mouse breeding in individually ventilated cages (IVC). LAMRI has also established a laboratory for microinjection of mouse embryos. Accordingly, at the beginning of LARMI’s work, Prof. Bojan Polić and his associates performed the first targeted mutation of mouse genes in embryonic stem cells and established the production of genetically modified mice (2003/2004). LAMRI produced several mouse mutants, which was the first such undertaking in the Republic of Croatia.

The construction of LAMRI and the production of genetically modified mice enabled new opportunities and breakthroughs in the Faculty’s scientific research. Today, LAMRI has over 100 conventional and genetically modified mouse strains. The use of high-quality experimental animals and the possibility of creating new mouse models enabled the development of new directions in research and numerous high-quality publications and scientific projects in the last almost two decades. Overall, LAMRI represents a unique capital scientific infrastructure facility in our country that contributed and continues to contribute to the development of modern biomedical research and the international recognition of the Faculty.