Ten Top Tips for Animal Ethics Application Success
4. Including and reconciling all scientific information
A problem commonly identified by AECs is inadequate application detail relating to scientific procedures, particularly drug administration. Where such detail is included, it is sometimes applied inconsistently across the application. For all agents administered, applicants must ensure that details of dose rates, infusion rates, volumes, needle gauges and routes/methods of administration are included and reconciled across all sections of the application.
Applicants should also provide a brief description of the mechanism of action and the anticipated impact on animals of each agent. Inclusion of such information in the timeline would be advantageous.
Scientific details, such as needle gauge, dose rates and volumes, time points, routes/methods of administration, and the number of repeats, must also be clearly justified in terms of experimental design and best practice. For example, needle-gauges are often questioned as inappropriate for use with certain animals or in specific circumstances. Where there is doubt about current best practice the Animal Welfare Officer is available for advice.
Further resources:
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See our A-Z of animal welfare for guidance on:
- Blood collection and biological sampling
- Drug administration
- Toxicology
- Dosing and sampling (National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research, UK).