How can I reduce the amount of variability when measuring glucose values in mice?
Blood glucose levels fluctuate when mice are exposed to changes in their environment. These changes can be acute or chronic. Glucose levels may vary substantially within a group of same-aged mice (± 3 days) and upon repeat sampling of an individual mouse. It is therefore important to minimize the handling stress that mice are exposed to and develop a standardized protocol that decreases variability and allows accurate replication. The following guidelines may help eliminate some variability in glucose levels. • Allow mice to acclimate to the investigator’s environment for at least one week, preferably two, prior to glucose sampling. This will allow the mice to recover from any shipping stress (shipping stress can be reduced by utilizing a truck route), and adapt to their new surroundings which may include changes in diet, bedding, mode of water administration, housing density, and health status. It is also helpful to have the new technicians handle the mice periodically prior to sampli
