FELASA guidelines for the production and nomenclature of transgenic rodents

The standardized nomenclature of rodent strains, genes and mutations has long been the focus of careful attention. Its aim is to provide proper designation of laboratory animals used in research projects and to convey as much information on each strain as possible. Since the development of different techniques to mutate the genome of laboratory rodents on a large scale, the correct application of current nomenclature systems is of increased significance. It facilitates not only the accurate communication of scientific results but is indispensable in controlling the dramatically increased number of transgenic animal models in experimental units, archives and databases. It is regrettable that many publications, especially on transgenic rodents, use vague and inappropriate strain designation. This situation should definitely be improved, particularly considering the increasingly emphasized importance of genetic background on the phenotype of mutations. The aim of these guidelines is to raise awareness about specific features of production and of the current nomenclature system used for transgenic rodents.     

Report of the FELASA Working Group on evaluation of quality systems for animal units

This report compares and considers the merits of existing, internationally available quality management systems suitable for implementation in experimental animal facilities. These are: the Good Laboratory Practice Guidelines, ISO 9000:2000 (International Organization for Standardization) and AAALAC International (Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International). Good laboratory practice (GLP) is a legal requirement for institutions undertaking non-clinical health and environmental studies for the purpose of registering or licensing for use and which have to be 'GLP-compliant'. GLP guidelines are often only relevant for and obtainable by those institutions. ISO is primarily an external business standard, which provides a management tool to master and optimize a business activity; it aims to implement and enhance 'customer satisfaction'. AAALAC is primarily a peer-reviewed system of accreditation which evaluates the organization and procedures in programmes of animal care and use to ensure the appropriate use of animals, safeguard animal well-being (ensuring state-of-the-art housing, management, procedural techniques, etc.) as well as the management of health and safety of staff. Management needs to determine, on the basis of a facility's specific goals, whether benefits would arise from the introduction of a quality system and, if so, which system is most appropriate. The successful introduction of a quality system confers peer-recognition against an independent standard, thereby providing assurance of standards of animal care and use, improving the quality of animal studies, and contributing to the three Rs-reduction, refinement and replacement.     

Guidelines for the veterinary care of laboratory animals: report of the FELASA/ECLAM/ESLAV Joint Working Group on Veterinary Care

Veterinary professionals working in partnership with other competent persons are essential for a successful animal care and use programme. A veterinarian's primary responsibilities are defined by their own professional regulatory bodies, but in this area of work there are further opportunities for contribution, which will assist in safeguarding the health and welfare of animals used in research. These guidelines are aimed not only at veterinarians to explain their duties, and outline the opportunities to improve the health and welfare of animals under their care, but also at employers and regulators to help them meet their responsibilities. They describe the desirability for postgraduate education towards specialization in laboratory animal medicine and detail the many competencies necessary to fulfil the role of the laboratory animal veterinarian. They detail the need for veterinary expertise to promote good health and good welfare of animals used in biomedical research during husbandry as well as when under experimental procedures. Regulatory and ethical aspects are covered as are the involvement of the veterinarian in education and training of others working in the animal care and use programme. Managerial aspects, including occupational health and safety, are also areas where the veterinarian's input can assist in the successful implementation of the programme.     

Undergraduate and postgraduate students' responses to mandatory courses (FELASA category C) in laboratory animal science

The results from the analysis of the course evaluations from FELASA category C compulsory courses in laboratory animal science at Uppsala University showed that the students realize that theoretical knowledge of the subject and practical skills are of great importance to the success of their future research involving animal experiments. All the subjects and elements of the course, in particular the practicals on animal handling and procedures using live anaesthetized animals, were fully appreciated by the students.     

Animal Minds and Animal Emotions

The possibility of conscious experiences of emotions in non-humananimals has been much less explored than that of conscious experiencesassociated with carrying out complex cognitive tasks. However,no great cognitive powers are needed to feel hunger or painand it may be that the capacity to feel emotions is widespreadin the animal kingdom. Since plants can show surprisingly sophisticated"choice" and "decision-making" mechanisms and yet we would notwish to imply that they are conscious, attribution of emotionsto animals has to be done with care. Whether or not an animalpossesses anticipatory mechanisms associated with positive andnegative reinforcement learning may be a guide as to whetherit has evolved emotions.     

Animal Protection Measures in Taiwan: Taiwanese Attitudes Toward the Animal Protection Law and Animal Shelters

This study used a questionnaire, self-administered by 387 Taiwanese citizens, to assess Taiwanese perception and knowledge of the Animal Protection Law and perception and use of animal shelters. Most respondents (87%) knew that Taiwan has legal protection for animals. A –5 to 5 summary score measured knowledge of companion animal dog-related legal requirements. The median score was 3, indicating that almost all respondents had inadequate knowledge about these requirements. Although more dog caregivers had adequate knowledge of the law than did nondog caregivers (prevalence ratio = 1.9, 95% confidence interval: 1.1, 3.2), only 19% had adequate knowledge. Although most respondents (81%) knew Taiwan has animal shelters, only 19 (5%) reported visiting or participating in shelter activities. Only 6 (32%) of shelter visitors or users had a "good or better" impression of services received. Despite low usage of animal shelters, most respondents thought shelters should accept (87%) and relocate (90%) unwanted animals, capture strays (64%), assist in finding lost pets (79%), and educate the public about responsible ownership (85%). More than half (52%) thought shelters should perform euthanasia.     

模型动物在动物流感病毒传播机制研究中的应用

动物流感（influenza）不仅会对畜禽养殖业造成巨大的经济损失,而且可以跨越种间障碍进入人群,引发全球性的公共卫生危机和灾难性后果.模型动物是研究流感传播机制的重要基础.模型动物的使用有助于我们对流感病毒传播机制的深入了解.本文从流感病毒的宿主范围、常用模型动物的宿主限制因素和模型动物在流感病毒跨种传播机制中的选择与应用等三个方面进行了综述.     

动物福利在研究生实验动物学教学中的应用初探

在医学研究中,实验动物具有不可替代的地位和作用,越来越多的人开始关心动物福利。各医学院校是培养未来科研工作者的机构,实验动物在医学院校的使用量非常大,因此,在课堂教学中,培养医学生树立保护动物福利的观念具有重要意义。本文从课堂教育、实验动物处理、3R原则的实施等方面探讨了如何在教学过程中开展动物福利教育。     

MicroRNA与动物发育

MicroRNA(miRNA)是一类约22nt大小的内源性非编码RNA,它们通过剪切靶基因的转录产物或者抑制转录产物的翻译从而起到转录后调控靶基因表达的作用。在动物体内,通过基因敲除等方法所进行的大量研究表明了miRNA参与了胚胎早期发育、脑及神经发育、心脏发育、肌肉及骨骼发育等动物发育的各个方面。miRNA是动物发生发育过程中重要的调控因子。主要介绍了近年来miRNA在动物生长发育过程中的研究进展。     

Rooting the Animal Tree of Life

Identifying our most distant animal relatives has emerged as one of the most challenging problems in phylogenetics. This debate has major implications for our understanding of the origin of multicellular animals and of the earliest events in animal evolution, including the origin of the nervous system. Some analyses identify sponges as our most distant animal relatives (Porifera-sister hypothesis), and others identify comb jellies (Ctenophora-sister hypothesis). These analyses vary in many respects, making it difficult to interpret previous tests of these hypotheses. To gain insight into why different studies yield different results, an important next step in the ongoing debate, we systematically test these hypotheses by synthesizing 15 previous phylogenomic studies and performing new standardized analyses under consistent conditions with additional models. We find that Ctenophora-sister is recovered across the full range of examined conditions, and Porifera-sister is recovered in some analyses under narrow conditions when most outgroups are excluded and site-heterogeneous CAT models are used. We additionally find that the number of categories in site-heterogeneous models is sufficient to explain the Porifera-sister results. Furthermore, our cross-validation analyses show CAT models that recover Porifera-sister have hundreds of additional categories and fail to fit significantly better than site-heterogenuous models with far fewer categories. Systematic and standardized testing of diverse phylogenetic models suggests that we should be skeptical of Porifera-sister results both because they are recovered under such narrow conditions and because the models in these conditions fit the data no better than other models that recover Ctenophora-sister.