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  • Protocol Review
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Response to Protocol Review Scenario: Memorandum of understanding

Lab Animal volume 45, pages 252–253 (2016)Cite this article

Invertebrates are not generally covered by IACUC policy and oversight. There are cases wherein, if used in conjunction with vertebrates, they can fall under the IACUC's purview. AAALAC International has published a webpage of frequently asked questions, which specifically addresses this occasional inclusion of invertebrates1. However, they make a point of only including invertebrates when colonies are housed within animal facilities, when higher level invertebrates are used, or when invertebrates make up a major portion of a unit's research mission. The described scenario does not seem to be on the scale that AAALAC implies.

The scenario, as presented, lacks some information that is relevant to the question of how to proceed. Why does Montfort need ticks that have recently been attached to animal? The answer to this question could determine the need for IACUC oversight of the work. If the goal is a general survey of active tick populations that affect the local pet and human populations, then this could be set up as a simple case of professional collaboration. If the goal is to obtain the blood meal from the tick, the study could be interpreted as tissue collection and thus fall under IACUC policy.

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References

  1. AAALAC International. AAALAC Accreditation: Frequently Asked Questions (2015). https://www.aaalac.org/accreditation/faq_landing.cfm#A2

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  1. Wiesen is Manager of Husbandry Services at the Department of Laboratory Animal Resources, University of Pittsburgh, PA.,

    Liesl Wiesen

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  1. Liesl Wiesen
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Wiesen, L. Response to Protocol Review Scenario: Memorandum of understanding. Lab Anim 45, 252–253 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban.1045

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