Vivarium Modernization with Digital Ventilated Cages to Enhance Research Capacity and Reproducibility, and Provide Cage Environment Monitoring for Improved Operational Efficiency and Animal Welfare

摘要 我们正在寻求购买和安装集成数字通风笼系统的支持， 提高业务效率，加强研究支持业务并使之现代化， 现有的，超过25岁的共享使用ABSL 3设施。这是及时的，因为 增加我们要求的集成数字通风笼（DVC®）系统将协同 我们正在进行的机构战略计划，以现代化现有的饲养设施，并有广泛的 对研究机构的好处。静态微隔离器笼系统目前在 使用是次优和过时的，不能满足目前或未来的需要，大量的 来自不同学科的研究人员对感染SAR 2-Covid的动物进行ABSL 3工作， SARS-Covid变体和其他BL 3制剂。DVC®是一种独特的革命性家用笼 监测系统由电子和软件组件的混合组成，以收集一组 直接从笼子里获取信息我们选择这个系统的目标是：1）提高 共享设施的运营效率和2）加强动物福利管理。此外，委员会认为， 3)独特的检测系统收集外部环境条件 （温度、湿度、噪声和振动、人为干预等）在家里的笼子里这些 这些因素可能对使用动物的实验产生影响，并在出版物中将其报告为 全科实践有助于提高研究质量（严谨性和可重复性）。的 将一个过时的ABSL 3设施现代化，使其成为一个更安全的设施， 两个动物饲养室中的集成数字通风笼系统。设备现代化 将联合收割机与机构资助的现代化努力结合起来，并可能产生协同作用， 在接下来的六个月内完成-例如，现代化的动物圈养系统 将位于与现代化BL 3组织套件相邻并可直接进入的房间内 处理和标本处理。因此，我们提出的设备现代化是一个关键 为满足来自不同学科的当前和未来调查人员的需求， 啮齿类动物模型用于研究，涉及越来越多的BL 3病原体。

ABSTRACT We are seeking support to purchase and install an integrated digital ventilated cage system to enhance operational efficacy and modernize and strengthen the research-supporting operations of an existing, more than twenty-five-year-old shared-use ABSL3 facility. This FOA is timely, since the addition of the integrated Digital Ventilated Cage (DVC®) system we are requesting would synergize with our ongoing institutional strategic plan to modernize existing vivarium facilities, and have broad benefits for the institutional research community. The static microisolator caging system currently in use is suboptimal and antiquated and cannot meet the current or future needs of the large number of investigators from different disciplines performing ABSL3 work with animals infected with SAR2-Covid, SARS-Covid variants and other BL3 agents. The DVC® is a unique and revolutionary home-cage monitoring system composed of a mix of electronics and software components to collect a set of information directly from the home cage. We selected this system with the goals of 1) improving the shared-use facility operational efficiency and 2) enhancing animal welfare management. Furthermore, 3) the unique detection system collects extrinsic environmental conditions (temperature, humidity, noise and vibration, human intervention, etc.) in the home cages. These factors are likely to have effects on experiments using animals and reporting them in publications as a general practice could contribute to improved research quality (rigor and reproducibility). The modernization of an outdated ABSL3 facility to a more secure one containing a state-of-the-art integrated digital ventilated cage system in two animal housing rooms. This equipment modernization will combine and potentially synergize with institutionally-funded modernization efforts slated to be completed within the next six months – for example, the modernized animal housing caging system will be located in rooms adjacent to and with direct access to a modernized BL3 suite for tissue processing and specimen processing. Therefore, our proposed equipment modernization is a critical step towards meeting the needs of current and future investigators from diverse disciplines using rodent animal models for research involving an increasing number of BL3 pathogens.