# MoTrPAC: UC Preclinical Animal Study Site

> **NIH NIH U01** · UNIVERSITY OF IOWA · 2020 · $460,811

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
The University of California Preclinical Animal Study Site (UC PASS) is a collaborative effort between UC
Davis and UC San Diego that brings together the scientific expertise, state of the art technologies and facilities,
and institutional support to achieve the primary objectives goals of the PASS, which are to: 1) develop animal
models that best complement the endurance and resistance training protocols used in the human trials, and 2)
provide organ and tissue samples collected at multiple time points after both acute and chronic exercise for
analysis by the Chemical Analysis Sites. The animal studies to be undertaken by the PASS will begin to
elucidate the molecular pathways responsible for the acute and chronic effects of both endurance and
resistance exercise on individual organs, as well as identify the interactions between organs; the goal being to
understand the mechanisms by which different modes of physical activity impart their health benefits. In order
to reach this goal, experts in model development and phenotyping of the resulting muscle and global health
adaptations will be essential. The UC PASS team has exactly these traits. The team acknowledges that the
ultimate animal model and exercise tests to be utilized in the PASS will be determined by the Molecular
Transducers of Physical Activity Common (MoTrPAC) Steering Committee. In this application we provide a
strong rationale and justification for the use of the rat as the animal model and propose specific endurance and
resistance exercise programs to be used in Phase I of the PASS, highlighting the major advantages and
limitations of each paradigm. In Phase II of the PASS we build on the models established in Phase I and
propose three specific aims to begin to produce a standard curve of molecular transducers versus adaptive
response to exercise. In Phase II we propose to exercise animals of increasing age or increasing adiposity,
determine the adaptive response to 12 weeks of training, and relate this with the acute molecular transducer
response to exercise. With this secondary screen, we will be able to identify molecular transducers that directly
correlate with the local or global health benefits of exercise. We will then use this information to test the genetic
requirement for these molecular transducers for the health benefits of exercise. The UC PASS is composed of
an exceptional team of primary investigators and key collaborators/advisors with expertise in the development
of animal models of exercise, the molecular response to exercise, and applied human exercise interventions.
This team will provide leadership and the necessary skill sets to successfully model human exercise in
animals, which is essential to the success of the MoTrPAC Common Fund and achievement of its goal: to
define and understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms of the human health benefits of physical activity.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9823831
- **Project number:** 5U01AG055133-04
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF IOWA
- **Principal Investigator:** Sue C Bodine
- **Activity code:** U01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $460,811
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2016-12-15 → 2022-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9823831

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9823831, MoTrPAC: UC Preclinical Animal Study Site (5U01AG055133-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9823831. Licensed CC0.

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