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The age-defying laboratory mouse known as Yoda died peacefully in his cage at the Univ. of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Mich., on April 22, 2004.

Yoda weighed between 10 and 15 grams during his adult life. Most lab mice of his strain grow to about 30 or 35 grams, but they typically live only 2 to 2.5 years. While small size and extreme longevity in some lab animals can be attributed to low-calorie diets, Yoda's food intake was never restricted.

A mutation in the gene Pit1 accounts for Yoda's dwarfism, long life span, and other unusual traits, says Richard Miller of the University of Michigan, who supervised the mouse's care. Mice with this mutation seem to delay aging and develop diseases such as cancer about 40 percent later than related mice with normal Pit1 do.


above: Yoda (left) and normal mice (right) at University of Michigan, Medical School

Source:

http://www.med.umich.edu/medschool/facts_faces/

Richard A. Miller
University of Michigan Medical School
M4101 MSI Box 0624
1301 Catherine Road
Ann Arbor, MI 48109