Step 1: Prepare Mvein restrainers
Prepare Mvein restrainers and a 100 ml bottle of luke warm water.
Step 2: Load Mouse
Load mouse head first into the restrainer. This is one of the advantages of Mvein since with other restrainers the mouse needs to be loaded in by the tail which involves pulling on the mouse’s tail.
Step 3: Close front cover
Close the cover so that the tail is placed through opening and loosely tighten the screws
Step 4: Immobilize
Immobilize the mouse in Mvein restrainer by adjusting position of head cone and loosely tightening the screws.
Step 5: Warm Tail
Warm the mouse’s tail by placing the Mvein restrainer on the beaker.
Step 6: Place restrainer for injection
Rotate Mvein restrainer 90 degrees so that the tail is lifted in position for injection.
Step 7: Prepare for injection with Aloha Surfer Salutation Approach
Prepare for insertion into tail vein by holding syringe in ‘aloha’ position with the bevel up. Use smaller syringes if necessary to fit in hand comfortably. Eg. cat# 324702 from VWR (https://ca.vwr.com/store/product/en/4646138/ins ulin-syringes-with-permanently-attached-needles- bd-medical).
Step 8: Anchor
Anchor hand on the restrainer and table while gently extending the mouse’s tail in place.
Step 9: Inject
Gently insert the needle into the mouse’s lateral tail vein with the needle bevel up and proceed with the injection. The needle should easily slide up the vein during insertion and there should be no resistance/back pressure when depressing the plunger vein with pinky.
Important Considerations
Make sure the temperature is under 107 °F if using water to warm the tail of mouse. This will prevent any burns and/or damage to the mouse’s tail.
The tail skin of C57BL/6 mice that are approximately 10 weeks of age becomes darker and it is more difficult to see the vessels. This can also be the case with sick, dehydrated or anemic mice.
It is important to note that the depth of the vein is slightly different at different locations on the tail.
It is recommended to be well rested and to limit coffee consumption before performing the procedure to avoid shaking during the injection. This is especially the case for experiments that require numerous tail vein injections.
Training Course
MediLumine’s offers an in person tail vein injection course to help master the procedure. Ref. https://medilumine.com/services
Tail vein Injections as a Service
MediLumine’s offers a tail vein injection service for your larger studies. Our AALAS certified technician can perform the injections for you. We typically inject 100 to 200 mice per day. Ref. https://medilumine.com/services
