The 129 mouse strain has become of increasing interest to neurobiologists d
ue to its importance in gene targeting studies. However it has been pointed
out that 129 mice suffer from a number of neuroanatomical idiosyncrasies t
hat may make them less attractive as animal models in neurobiology. Here we
show that 129 mice also differ from other commonly used strains in possess
ing large numbers of unmyelinated axons in their lumbar motor roots. By con
trast in all other strains of mice (C57BL/6, C3H, Swiss-Webster) that we st
udied the axons in the L5 roots are all myelinated. Additionally we show th
at 129 mice have smaller myelinated axons than other mouse strains and perf
orm poorly in the rotorod test. These characteristics must be kept in mind
in studies of mutant mice that are frequently performed on a mixed genetic
background containing a129 contribution. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ireland
Ltd. All rights reserved.