Producers of TKO™ Knockout Rat Models

Transposagen is the worldwide leader in the creation of unique knockout rat lines. The company's initial products, TKO™ Knockout Rat Models, are laboratory rats, with a single gene disruption, that mimic a human disease. While mice have proven to be a useful rodent model, a knockout rat is more relevant for many human pathologies, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, arthritis, and many autoimmune and behavioral disorders. Knockout rats will enable a greater scrutiny of candidate drugs, will facilitate more favorable clinical testing in humans saving millions in development dollars, and will create new drug targets for the treatment of these diseases.

The production of large varieties of knockout rats was not economically or technically feasible until 2008 when Transposagen began creating models by manipulating the germ cells in rats. Over 100 unique knockout rat lines were created in 2008 and another 1,200 unique lines are expected by the end of 2009.

Transposagen is a member and sponsor of the Knock Out Rat Consortium (KORC). A public database of available knockout rat models can be found on the KORC website.