The Melbourne Bioresources Platform houses and cares for small laboratory species to assist researchers studying basic biological function and disease. We are committed to the highest standards in animal care and welfare.
Our facilities house mice, rats and zebrafish. We also house small numbers of rabbits, guinea pigs, ferrets, dunnarts and some reptiles and amphibians. We can produce both standard inbred and genetically altered lines of mice.
The animal healthcare program is overseen by a veterinarian who is certified in laboratory animal medicine. They offer expert advice and training in anaesthesia and surgery.
Our technical staff offer training in animal handling, either one-on-one or in small groups. We can provide assistance with techniques and training in areas such as sample collection and substance administration. Courses covering animal handling and common laboratory procedures include both theoretical and practical components.
We offer a number of specialised services with our partners in the Melbourne Biomedical Precinct and Phenomics Australia. These services include rederivation to establish ‘clean’ animal colonies, IVF, CRISPr and cryopreservation.
Our services follow best practice animal care and welfare. Our strict regulatory compliance is overseen by the Office of Research Ethics and Integrity. Our facilities are licenced by Animal Welfare Victoria. We use the Animal Management System (AMS) database, developed by WEHI, to manage all our animals on campus.
Resources
- Anaesthetic machines
- Tecniplast ventilated racks
- Thoren ventilated racks
- Standard open topped boxes
- Laminar flow change stations
- Class 2 biosafety hoods
- Iso cages suitable for germfree work
- EchoMRI
- Scancoviva CT80
- blood pressure recording machine
- IVIS Spectrum in vivo imaging system
- quarantine facilities approved by the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment
- Transnetyx TAG collection point
User information
The platform is open to all researchers at the University of Melbourne and its partner institutes in the Melbourne Biomedical Precinct. The platform operates on a fee-for-service basis.
Other platforms
The platform can be used in conjunction with:
Contact us
Further information can also be found on the Research Gateway, which is available to all University of Melbourne academic and honorary staff, graduate researchers and professional staff. Please note, to access the Research Gateway, you will need to login with your University of Melbourne username and password.
- Dr Catheryn O’Brien
- melb-bioresources@unimelb.edu.au
- Phone
- +61 3 8344 7173