As part of an IACUC-approved study on therapeutic modalities for intervertebral disc degeneration, a principal investigator acquired 24 adult female New Zealand white rabbits from a commercial vendor in May 2008. We housed the rabbits in an AAALAC-accredited animal facility following the recommendations of the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals1 and the Animal Welfare Act2. An automated monitoring system controlled ventilation and maintained temperature at 19 ± 3 °C, humidity at 35–55% and air change rate at 15 air changes per h. Illumination was also automatically controlled, and the rabbits were maintained on a light:dark cycle of 12 h:12 h. We limit-fed the rabbits 150 g of Global Hi Fiber Rabbit Diet per day and provided them with reverse osmosis drinking water ad libitum using an automatic watering and valve system.
The intervertebral disc degeneration study required each rabbit to undergo an initial surgical procedure to create disc degeneration in two non-contiguous discs using a lateral retroperitoneal approach. Twelve weeks later, a second surgery was done to provide the experimental treatments. Lateral radiographs of the spine were taken before and immediately after surgery and then at 2-week intervals until completion of the study at 24 weeks. Radiography was done on rabbits sedated with ketamine and acepromazine. At the end of the study, the rabbits were to be euthanized.
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