Mouse strain identification by means of discriminant analysis using mandible measurements.

Mouse strains were identified by the aid of discriminant functions obtained from discriminant analysis of values measured at 13 sites of the mandible. They consisted of nine inbred strains of mice, AA, DDD, DDK, DDY, DSD, KK, NC, RR, and SS, and one mutant strain, NC-brp, maintained exactly in the National Institute of Animal Health, Minstry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. As a result, the probability of erroneous discrimination was 1 head/246 head, or 0.41%, for the males and 2 head/238 head, or 0.84%, for the females. Therefore, almost all the mouse strains were identified correctly. These results seemed to indicate that the strains of mice would be identified more correctly than before, if the present method by the aid of discriminant functions was applied in addition to the methods of identification based on the coat color, biochemical marker-genes, and histocompatibility genes.