NEUROLOGICAL RESEARCH ANIMAL FACILITY

老鼠已经成为研究人类疾病的首要动物模型。杰克逊实验室（TJL）通过其科研人员的独立研究项目，在开发人类疾病小鼠模型方面发挥着核心作用。这些项目需要检测和分析通常是微妙的表型的能力，这取决于动物设施在确保最佳健康和性能的条件下饲养小鼠的能力。TJL的研究动物设施（RAF）和相关的动物健康项目为TJL维持的2000多种基因定义小鼠提供现代化，最先进的畜牧业和兽医护理。目前正在努力将所有的皇家空军升级为一个屏障设施，在这个设施中，所有的老鼠都处于同等的高健康状态。这项工作促进了与内部和外部合作者的小鼠交换，并确保所有TJL的研究人员都可以使用实验室不断扩大的表型设备，这些设备将被安置在毗邻英国皇家空军的高水平屏障设施中。拟议项目的目标是升级英国皇家空军现有的非屏障动物室，为TJL神经科学研究人员提供屏障动物室，这些研究人员可以直接访问共享表型设施。申请资金用于1)对英国皇家空军动物研究实验室（ARL） 3层现有的4个动物室进行翻新和升级，以创建5个屏障级动物室，每个动物室包含一个大型手术室；2)为ARL第3级提升空气处理、环境控制和监测系统；3)在ARL 3层建造一个人员出入口储物柜；4)为新动物房购买便携式、高效微粒空气过滤器（hepa）过滤的正单独通风笼系统和移动式、高效微粒空气过滤器（hepa）过滤的通风换装站。

The mouse has emerged as the premier animal model for investigations into human disease. The Jackson Laboratory (TJL) plays a central role in the development of mouse models for human diseases through the independent research programs of its scientific staff members. These projects require the capacity to detect and analyze often subtle phenotypes, which depends on the ability of the animal facility to house the mice under conditions that ensure optimum health and performance. TJL's Research Animal Facility (RAF) and associated animal health programs provide modern, state-of-the-art animal husbandry and veterinary care for the over 2,000 genetically defined mouse strains maintained at TJL. An effort is ongoing to upgrade all of the RAF to a barrier facility in which all mice are at equivalent, high health status. This undertaking facilitates exchange of mice with internal and external collaborators and ensures that all TJL investigators have access to the Laboratory's expanding phenotyping facilities, which will be housed in high-level barrier facilities adjacent to the RAF. The objective of the proposed project is to upgrade existing non-barrier animal rooms in the RAF to provide barrier animal rooms for TJL neuroscience investigators in a location with direct access to the shared phenotyping facilities. Funds are requested to 1) renovate and upgrade the four existing animal rooms on Level 3 of the RAF's Animal Research Laboratory (ARL) to create five barrier-level animal rooms, each containing a large procedure room; 2) upgrade the air-handling, environmental control, and monitoring systems for Level 3 of the ARL; 3) construct a personnel entry/exit locker on ARL Level 3; and 4) purchase portable, HEPA-filtered positively individually ventilated caging systems and mobile, HEPA-filtered ventilated changing stations for the new animal rooms.