Brief introduction in phenotypic and genetic differences of C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice substrains.

Experimental mice play a critical role in biomedical research. The phenotype and application of different substrains vary due to genetic differentiation and variation. To ensure validity and reliability of results, it is imperative to adhere to standardized experiments and controls. This paper objectively reviews the origin, differentiation, and phenotypic and genetic differences between the C57BL/6 and BALB/c mouse substrains. Furthermore, an optimal selection strategy is proposed based on the genetic quality control technology to facilitate the precise application of these two mouse substrains.