Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Vaccines are also available for a wide variety of diseases
that can be experimentally inoculated into monkeys and the
decision to immunize personnel should be based on the risk
of transfer, and in consultation with a health care
professional.
breeding groups of NHPs and those performing long-term
studies with a limited need for new animals have the luxury
of maintaining closed colonies, many institutions require
large numbers of animals and have a high turnover rate of
experimental subjects. These facilities must frequently
acquire new groups of animals from outside sources. And,
even those facilities with relatively large breeding groups
may be forced to acquire new animals to replace animals
lost to normal morbidity and mortality or to maintain the
genetic diversity of breeding groups. Since newly acquired
animals have the potential to harbor pathogenic organisms
that may place an established colony at risk, each facility
acquiring new groups of NHPs should have rigorous
screening and quarantine protocols to reduce this risk.
Personnel Training Program
A strong personnel health surveillance and immunization
program is important, but these efforts are doomed to fail if
staff members are not adequately trained. All new
personnel employed by an NHP facility should undergo
extensive instruction prior to working with animals or being
granted access to the animal facility. Not only is this good
practice, but it is legally required by the Animal Welfare
Act (1986) and detailed in guidelines in the Guide for the
Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (Institute of Labo-
ratory Animal Resources (US), Committee on Care and
Use of Laboratory Animals, 2010). Ideally, the training
should include lectures on the following topics:
Goals of Quarantine
The basic goals of quarantine are to protect the existing
colony from the introduction of infectious diseases, to
protect personnel from the introduction of zoonotic agents,
to minimize the transmission of diseases between animals
being quarantined, and to optimize the health and condition
of newly acquired animals. These goals are accomplished
by using known and trusted sources for animals, main-
taining strict separation between quarantine facilities and
the rest of the colony, maintaining small stable groups
during quarantine, and examining and screening animals
for diseases while in quarantine.
Quarantine groups should be established by species,
disease status (where known), and source and date of arrival
in quarantine. Other factors to consider when establishing
quarantine groups are the age of animals and existing social
history. The length of quarantine and the extent of exami-
nations and screening procedures are determined by the
species of NHP, the source and condition of the animals, the
value of the colony at risk, and, for primary importers,
federal regulations.
Unlike many other laboratory species, NHPs often come
from a wide variety of domestic and nondomestic sources.
The disease status varies with the source and level of
conditioning. Their flora is generally not as well defined as
other laboratory species and they represent a much greater
zoonotic potential. In the following sections we will
summarize the basic aspects of NHP quarantine procedures.
Basic physiology and behavior of common captive NHP
species.
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Basic husbandry of common captive NHP species.
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The common zoonotic pathogens of NHP.
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Transmission of human disease to NHP.
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Biosafety practices (e.g. personal protective equipment,
post-exposure SOPs).
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Techniques for evaluating the health of captive NHP.
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In addition, each individual who may come in contact with
NHPs should review all the standard operating procedures
(SOPs) pertinent to their position prior to gaining access to
any animal area. These SOPs should be available to the
employee at all times in hard copy or electronic format. All
personnel, regardless of their duties, should be well
informed about the research projects being performed at an
NHP facility, especially disease-related experiments. This
training will promote teamwork, inspire dedication, and
improve overall animal care.
Continuing education and refresher courses should be
provided to all personnel to improve their abilities to
contribute to the overall PMP and to reinforce important
basic knowledge regarding the NHPs they are responsible
for. Continued education should be provided on site, but
staff should also be encouraged to attend national meetings,
local courses relevant to their fields, and/or online training
courses in order to augment their institutional training.
Regulations
USA
In response to historically high morbidity and mortality in
newly imported rhesus macaques and disease outbreaks in
animals and human handlers, the US government has
implemented a national quarantine program under the
auspices of
QUARANTINE
Maintaining a closed colony is the most effective strategy
for minimizing the number of unwanted pathogens that are
introduced into captive NHP populations. While facilities
that maintain large, genetically diverse, self-sustaining
the United States Public Health Service
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