01/28 – RGD releases an updated Phenotypes and Models Portal

RGD is pleased to announce the official release of the updated Phenotypes and Models Portal.  RGD’s Phenotypes and Models Portal has always given users consolidated access to data and information about rat strains, their phenotypes and their use as models for studying human disease.  The updated portal now makes this information even easier to access, with links on the landing page showing users the wide variety of data and tools available to them.  The improved layout of the page puts the most commonly used links, such as the link to the PhenoMiner tool, front and center. In addition to the new look, the updated Phenotypes and Models Portal has added functionality.  For instance, the PhenoMiner Expected Ranges tool is the place to find the expected ranges for a number of phenotypic measurements for your rat strain of interest.  Where a sufficient number of experiments exist for a given strain and clinical measurement, expected ranges have been calculated using the same type of statistical meta-analysis used for consolidating results across multiple human clinical trials.  The Expected Ranges tool gives options for browsing the results by the trait measured, by the measurement or by the rat strain.  For some phenotype measurements and strains, age- and sex-stratified expected ranges are also available, giving the user the ability to compare between sexes or across different ages.  Finally, the expected ranges result page gives one click access to the original PhenoMiner records that were used to generate each range. Information about Genetic Models is not new to RGD, but it is a recent addition to the Phenotypes and Models Portal.  For a researcher looking for a model in which a specific gene has been modified, the portal provides links to the full list of genetic models and to the more specific list of models produced as part of the PhysGen Programs for Genomic Applications (PGA) and Gene Editing Research and Resource Center (GERRC) projects, both located at the Medical College of Wisconsin.  Both lists contain information about and links to RGD report pages for the genes, alleles and strains, including the availability of the strains and information about associated phenotypes, diseases, etc. Another new addition to the Phenotypes and Models Portal takes the portal beyond the rat.  The new “Phenotypes in other animal models” page gives information about four additional species used as models of human disease or which spontaneously develop such diseases:  chinchilla, 13-lined ground squirrel, dog and bonobo.  In each case, information is presented regarding the specific diseases associated with that animal, including links to RGD report pages for the top diseases for that species.  For each, a link is also provided to the corresponding genome browser and genome information page.  For chinchilla, the page links to the Chinchilla PhenoMiner for exploring quantitative phenotype measurements in chinchilla, the model of choice for otitis media and other upper respiratory infections. Check out the updated Phenotypes and Models Portal at https://rgd.mcw.edu/wg/physiology/.