'Mouse book of life' published

Japanese researchers have published an encyclopaedia of mouse genes - with actual DNA included. The book, published by the RIKEN Genomic Sciences Centre in Yokohama, is made up of 172 water-soluble pages. It contains dried, duplicate samples of all 30,000 known mouse genes, arranged as dots. The publishers hope that their mouse 'book of life' will slash the cost of distributing genetic material to universities and biotech companies around the world.

Scientists published the entire DNA sequence of the mouse genome last December. They found that mice have around 30,000 different genes, most of which have a human equivalent. This means that studying mouse genes will be invaluable to many researchers looking at genes involved in human health and disease. But whilst DNA sequence information can be distributed electronically, actual samples of DNA must be sent by post. A whole genome has to be packaged up in dry ice, at a cost of up to $5000 (£3000), reports New Scientist magazine.

To use the DNA in the book, researchers will simply punch out the dot containing the gene they wish to study, and dissolve it in water. 'The paper disappears and the DNA appears' says Yoshihide Hayashizaki of RIKEN, which has so far published just ten copies of the encyclopaedia.