Animal facilities in the Biomedical Science Tower (BST) and the South Biomedical Science Tower (S-BST) at the University of Pittsburgh house an average daily census of more than 61,000 rodents in support of more than 113 PHS-funded biomedical and behavioral research projects. This represents an investment by the PHS of more than $25 million in annual direct costs. Of that amount, $7.1 million in annual direct costs supports research that uses rats housed in the BST and S-BST. Protection of these rodent colonies from communicable diseases is crucial to ensuring the continued success and productivity of the animal-based research programs at the University of Pittsburgh. Thus, the specific aim of this application for funding is: To obtain funds to purchase ventilated micro-isolator caging systems and HEPA-filtered laminar flow animal transfer stations for rat colonies housed in the South Biomedical Science Tower at the University of Pittsburgh.
This specific aim i s proposed to enhance the overall health status of rat colonies at the University of Pittsburgh through communicable disease prevention and through biocontainment in the event of an infectious disease outbreak.
