NEUROLOGICAL RESEARCH ANIMAL FACILITY

小鼠已经成为研究人类疾病的主要动物模型。杰克逊实验室(TJL)通过其科学工作人员的独立研究计划，在开发人类疾病的小鼠模型方面发挥着核心作用。这些项目需要检测和分析往往微妙的表型的能力，这取决于动物设施在确保最佳健康和性能的条件下饲养老鼠的能力。TJL的研究动物设施(RAF)和相关的动物健康计划为TJL维护的2000多个基因定义的小鼠品系提供现代、最先进的畜牧和兽医护理。一项正在努力将所有皇家空军升级为屏障设施的努力正在进行中，在该设施中，所有老鼠都处于同等的高健康状态。这项工作促进了小鼠与内部和外部合作者的交流，并确保所有TJL调查人员都可以使用实验室扩大的表型鉴定设施，这些设施将被安置在与皇家空军相邻的高级屏障设施中。拟议项目的目标是升级皇家空军现有的无障碍动物室，为TJL神经科学研究人员提供障碍动物室，地点可直接进入共用的表型鉴定设施。1)翻修和升级皇家空军动物研究实验室(ARL)3层现有的四个动物室，以创建5个屏障级别的动物室，每个都有一个大型程序室；2)升级ARL 3级的空气处理、环境控制和监测系统；3)在ARL 3级建造一个人员进出储物柜；以及4)为新的动物室购买便携式、HEPA过滤的正向独立通风笼子系统和流动的HEPA过滤通风换气站。

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.