Rat Genotyping for $5.50 per sample

Welcome to Rat Genotype, the most affordable, and highest quality, rat genotyping service available.

Send us your ear clippings and we will send you both the genotypes and associated agarose gel images. All for $5.50 per sample.

Have multiple strains to genotype? No problem. Receive our low price no matter how many PCR assays need to be run.

Have rats with multiple modifications? We run multiplex PCR reactions at no additional charge.

Have a PCR assay that is not working as it should? We will work with you to troubleshoot your assay and validate it.

Stop spending time extracting DNA, running PCR reactions, and analyzing agarose gel images. Outsource your rat genotyping and receive your results in 24 to 72 hours.

Rat Genotype was created in 2010 with the sole purpose of providing affordable, fast, and high quality rat genotyping services.

Our VISION is to be the leading rat genotyping company, recognized by our affordable services, high quality results, and friendly customer and technical support.

Our MISSION is to accelerate biological research and stimulate innovation by freeing scientists from having to perform their own rat genotyping.

Our VALUES are defined by our commitment to our people. We are dedicated to providing an environment that encourages: Innovation, Honesty, Integrity, and Hard Work. We believe in being leaders, not followers, promoting individual ability and creativity through continuous learning, development, and improvement. Our standards are uncompromising. We believe in integrity, business ethics, environmental responsibility, fairness, and delivering a superior customer experience.

For more information click on the About Us link in the menu.

Our services include every step of the genotyping process, from DNA extraction to a comprehensive genotyping report:

1. No Setup Fees

2. DNA Extraction

3. PCR Amplification

4. Gel Electrophoresis

5. Gel Documentation

6. Genotyping Analysis

7. Free Re-runs (if needed)

8. Genotyping Report

For more information click on the Our Services link in the menu.

When shipping an order to us, the most important consideration is to protect your samples. To do so, we recommend immersing your samples in 70% ethanol. Rat ear clips last at least 1 week at room temperature when stored in ethanol.

We accept samples in any format, including 1.5 ml tubes, screw caps, etc. We recommend the use of 0.2 ml 8-tube strips, mainly because it minimizes plastic waste and ethanol use. In addition 0.2 ml tubes tend to seal better than larger tubes, thus minimizing the chance of an ethanol leak.

To keep your 0.2 ml 8-tube strips organized, we recommend the use of a standard 7-pocket transparent plastic sleeve as the ones used to store strips of film negatives. Alternatively a used pipette tip box works too.

Send all packages to: - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Rat Genotype - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - 10320 Lilac Ridge Road- -- - - - - -- -- - - - - - - Escondido, CA 92026- -- - - - - -- -- - - - - - - - - Phone Number: 760-583-9777

For more information click on the Shipping link in the menu.

Toll-free: 877-743-6689 -♦- Phone: 760-583-9777 -♦- Address:.10320 Lilac Ridge Road, Escondido, CA 92026

The laboratory rat became the first animal domesticated for purely scientific reasons

Rats can eat chocolate

Rats can chew through glass, cinderblocks, wire, aluminum and lead

R. norvegicus can grow to 10 inches (25 cms) long excluding the tail and weight more than a pound

In 1828 the first albino rats were used in a laboratory experiment to study fasting

Rats are omnivores and will eat almost anything

Most laboratory rat strains are derived from the albino Wistar rat

Female rats can give birth when they are 6 weeks old and are able to have babies up to 12 times per year

The Sprague Dawley rat is used extensively in medical research in part because of its calmness and ease of handling

The Sprague Dawley rat has a life-span of 2.5 to 3.5 years

Zucker rats, a model for obesity, are leptin receptor mutants that can weight twice as much as normal rats

Rowett nudes are hairless rats that have no thymus

Fuzzy rats are hairless rats identified in a Pennsylvania laboratory in 1976

The laboratory rat originated in Asia

The oils in cedar and pine are toxic to rats

A group of rats is called a mischief

Rats have bellybuttons

Rats have terrible eyesight and need to use their whiskers to find their way

The rat genome is 2.75 million base pairs long

Rats do not have gallbladders or tonsils

Rattus norvegicus is commonly known as the brown rat

Rattus rattus is commonly known as the black rat

Inbred laboratory rats are created by breeding brother to sister for at least 300 generations

Brown rats are bigger than black rats, just like similarly colored bears

Like all rodents, the front incisors of rats never stop growing

Rats can swim for half a mile in open water

A rat's bite generates 7,000 pounds per square inch (a dog's: 1,000 psi; a human's: 150 psi)

Rats don't see in color

Rats can communicate ultrasonically

A rat's front teeth grow 4.5 to 5.5 inches per year

A rat can tread water for 3 days

A rat can survive being flushed down a toilet

A hindu temple dedicated to the rat goddess Karni Mata in India houses more than 20,000 rats

Rats have been proven to make a laughter-like noise (unable to be heard by humans) when tickled

Laboratory rats can survive 17-20 days without sleep

A rat can fall as far as 50 feet and land uninjured

Ancient Romans referred to rats as big mice (Mus Maximus) and mice as little mice (Mus Minimus)

The Bubonic Plague was caused by infected fleas jumping from rats to humans

There are 64 species under the genus Rattus

The Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) rat is the first known animal with inherited retinal degeneration

Laboratory rats should be kept in rooms set at about 70 degrees Fahrenheit and 50% humidity

According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the longest lived domestic rat died at 7.3 years of age

The rat is the first animal in the Chinese Zodiac

The Gambian Pouch rat can reach around 8 pounds in weight

Rats cannot sweat, so they use their tails to control their body temperature

Rats constantly leave droppings in the areas they frequent

Rats are known to carry over 70 diseases, including cholera, typhus and cowpox

In many parts of the world the rat remains a source of meat

Leviticus 11:29, the third book of the Hebrew Bible, states that rats are prohibited as food

Jacko, a 13 pound bull terrier, killed 100 rats in 5 minutes and 28 second in 1862

Rats have between 20,000 and 25,000 genes, the same as humans

Rat testicles are 2 times the size of those of a 400 pound gorilla

Rats are considered the second most successful mammal on Earth; after humans

Sprague Dewley rats, a strain of laboratory rat, can birth over 20 pups per litter

A female rat can mate up to 500 times with various mates during a 6-hour period of receptivity

There is approximately one rat per person in the United States

A one-pound rat has between 23 and 32 milliliters of blood

The common ancestor of rat and mouse lived approximately 12 to 25 millions of years ago

Our pricing structure is as follows:

- -- $5.50 per sample

No minimum order size or setup fees.

For rats with multiple genetic modifications (requiring >1 PCR assay per sample), there is no additional charge if we are able to multiplex the assays. For assays that cannot be multiplexed the price for additional reactions is $2.00 per sample.

For payment we accept Purchase Orders (POs), all major credit cards, bank/debit cards, checks, and direct bank transfers.

For more information click on the Price link in the menu.

We are committed to providing the best service to our customers. We understand that the best decisions are typically made only after considering all possibilities.

To this end we've compiled a list of all the companies that, as far as we know, may provide rat genotyping services. In alphabetical order, these are: Charles River, Clongen, GeneTyper, Laragen, MendelWorks, Seqwright, Taconic Farms, and TransnetYX.

For additional information about these companies, click on the Other Vendors link in the menu.

Some frequently asked questions:

What do I get for $5.50 per sample? - You get: 1. DNA extraction of your sample, 2. PCR amplification of your allele(s), 3. Data analysis, and 4. A complete genotyping report by email.

How many samples do I need to send to get the $5.50 per sample price? - - One sample.

What sample types do you accept? Currently we only accept ear clippings, but will be accepting other tissues in the future. Contact us for more information.

How should I ship my samples? - - - We recommend shipping your samples using USPS Priority Mail Flat-Rate Envelope, which delivers your samples in 2 days. For faster service use USPS Express Mail, FedEx, or UPS, which can deliver your samples overnight.

When do I get my results? -- - - - - - - - -- - We email your results within 24 to 72 hours of receiving your samples.

For more FAQs click on the FAQ link in the menu.

Thank you for your interest in Rat Genotype.

The quickest way to contact us is by calling toll-free at 1-877-743-6689. Our toll number is 1-760-583-9777.

We can also be reached by email. For general inquiries email us at info@ratgenotype.com. For customer service email us at cs@ratgenotype.com.

Our mailing and shipping address is the following: - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Rat Genotype - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - 10320 Lilac Ridge Road - -- - - - - -- -- - - - - - Escondido, CA 92026

For more contact information click on the Contact Us link in the menu.

E-mail: .cs@ratgenotype.com

In an article published in Nature on September 9, 2010, Qi-Long Ying's laboratory describes for the first time the generation of knockout rats using homologous recombination:

Production of p53 gene knockout rats by homologous recombination in embryonic stem cells. Nature: 467: 211-213.

In doing so they cleared one of the last barriers to using the rat's full potential as a model for studying human disease.