Laboratory Mouse Identification and Inventory Control

描述（申请人提供）：实验小鼠是现代生物医学研究必不可少的实验资源。美国国立卫生研究院（National Institutes of Health）每年支持对数百种小鼠品系和数百万只个体动物进行校内和校外研究。老鼠的繁殖和维护费用是许多研究项目的主要组成部分，每年超过4000万美元。因此，提高饲养研究小鼠的效率对NIH尤其有价值，因为它们可以在许多个人研究工作中提供经常性的成本节约。鼠标识别和库存控制系统还不能满足现有的需求。结果，老鼠的使用效率低下，不必要地购买、繁殖、饲养和治疗了多余的动物。同样重要的是，没有记录的、丢失的或鉴定错误的动物都可能危及有价值的实验。第二阶段STTR提出的工作将产生一个低成本的综合库存系统，用于对单个研究小鼠进行连续、自动监测。零售商店、医院和航运公司现有的库存控制系统很容易在复杂、动态的环境中跟踪单个单位。因此，一个广泛的工程基础设施的库存系统是现成的。该项目将调整现有库存系统的组成部分，并开发新技术来应对鼠标识别、库存和维护的独特挑战。以STTR第一阶段成功开发的原型为基础，将生产出一个完整的商业系统，满足小鼠住房设施、动物处理人员、兽医和研究人员的要求。具体目标详细介绍了该系统要开发的四个主要工程组件：(1)单个动物的永久，廉价的射频识别标签；（二）与动物搬运环境相适应的射频自动读取器；(3)快速、人性化地将标签贴在小鼠身上的工具；(4)与动物设施、兽医和研究人员的需求相适应的库存数据库和查询结构。这些组件将在建模和实际鼠标处理环境的背景下开发，允许快速原型和故障排除。完整的综合系统将在当地可用的鼠标室设施中进行广泛测试。经过测试后，库存控制系统将被制造出来，并出售给动物饲养场和住房设施，以及个别科研团体。公共卫生相关性：在美国国立卫生研究院的研究中，实验动物是人类健康和疾病的关键模型。动物研究的质量和有效管理影响着许多NIH研究所和中心的项目。改善动物库存对于控制和优化小鼠研究成本以及减少生产和饲养的动物数量至关重要。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The laboratory mouse is an essential experimental resource for modern biomedical research. The National Institutes of Health supports intramural and extramural research on hundreds of strains of mice and millions of individual animals each year. The cost of mouse breeding and maintenance is a major component of many research programs and surpasses $40 million annually. Consequently, improvements in the efficiency of maintaining research mice are especially valuable to NIH, since they can provide recurring cost savings across many individual research efforts. Mouse identification and inventory control systems have not advanced to meet the existing demand. As a result, mice are often used inefficiently, with excess animals purchased, bred, housed, and treated unnecessarily. Of equal importance, undocumented, lost, or incorrectly identified animals can compromise valuable experiments. The Phase II STTR proposed work will produce a low-cost, integrated inventory system for the continuous, automated monitoring of individual research mice. Existing inventory control systems in retail stores, hospitals, and shipping firms readily track individual units in complex, dynamic environments. Consequently, an extensive engineering infrastructure for inventory system are readily available. The project will adapt components of existing inventory systems and develop novel technologies to the unique challenges of mouse identification, inventory, and maintenance. Working from successful prototypes developed in the STTR Phase I, a complete commercial system will be produced that satisfies the requirements of mouse housing facilities, animal-handling staff, veterinarians, and research investigators. The Specific Aims detail the four primary engineering components to be developed for the system: (1) permanent, inexpensive radio-frequency identification labels for individual animals; (2) radio-frequency automated readers that are compatible with animal handling environments; (3) tools for the rapid and humane attachment of labels onto individual mice; and (4) an inventory database and query structure compatible with the needs of animal facilities, veterinarians, and research investigators. The components will be developed in the context of both modeled and actual mouse handling environments, allowing rapid prototyping and trouble-shooting. The complete, integrated system will be extensively tested in locally- available mouse room facilities. Following testing, the inventory control system will be manufactured and sold to animal breeding and housing facilities, as well as to individual scientific research groups. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Laboratory animals serve as critical models of human health and disease in NIH research. The quality and efficient management of animal research influences programs across many NIH Institutes and Centers. Improvements in animal inventory are essential for the control and refinement of mouse research costs, as well as minimizing the number of animals that are produced and maintained.