CONSTRUCTION OF RHESUS MACAQUE FACILITY

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The proposed construction will provide a complex of six buildings to be used for SPF Indian-origin rhesus monkeys and using them in AIDS-related research. The breeding facilities will consist of four buildings each with 14 indoor-outdoor cages. Total square footage of these buildings is 14,864. The breeding cages are separated into four buildings to reduce disease transmission. A climate-controlled building (544 sq. ft.) will be constructed in close association with the breeding cage buildings to be used for treating ill animals. It will have a treatment room, an isolation room and support rooms. The remaining building in the complex will be a personnel support facility. It will include two locker rooms, an office and a break room (624 sq. ft.). The SPF breeding colony to be housed in this complex is funded by a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Cooperative Agreement (U42-RR16024). Under this cooperative agreement, the SWRPRC will produce SPF rhesus monkeys for use primarily by NIH-grantees conducting AIDS-related research. The SWRPRC breeding colony, currently consisting of about 290 animals, is housed in a 40-year-old complex approximately 20 miles from the SWRPRC and on a military base that is scheduled to be turned over to the City of San Antonio in 2002. In addition to the operational difficulties of maintaining such a facility from a distance, the present facility can not accommodate the approximate doubling in colony size that is expected within the next four years. The SWRPRC combines experienced professional staff, proven methods, and excellent facilities for the virological and immunological evaluation of SPF rhesus macaques used in simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)/AIDS research. These resources, combined with the recently acquired SPF rhesus colony and staff skilled in state-of-the-art genetic and demographic management, position the SWRPRC to play a pivotal role in meeting the national need for SPF rhesus in AIDS-related research. The proposed construction will provide the animal housing facilities necessary for the SWRPRC to fully realize its potential to meet this national research need.