IACUC Protocol Submission
The University of Pittsburgh Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) oversees animal programs, facilities, and procedures to ensure the appropriate care, use, and humane treatment of animals used for research, testing, and education in accord with scientific and ethical principles. All information is sent to the IACUC office via e-mail. Once a new proposal is submitted, receipt is acknowledged within five business days. The proposal goes into a queue to await review; the reviewers consider the application and send any questions or concerns they might have about the proposal to the principal investigator. This stage, in total, can take as long as four weeks. After responses to the questions are submitted, the investigator should hear from the committee within about two weeks. The question-and-response cycle will continue until the committee is satisfied that the research meets all applicable IACUC guidelines. IACUC has posted a range of sample protocols online to assist investigators. In addition, the Guide for Animal Users details the IACUC process.
Conflicts of Interest
Conflicts of interest (COI) can threaten the integrity of an institution’s scholarship, research, instruction, evaluation, and administration. Because these are serious issues, the University must disclose conflicts to federal funding agencies and provide assurances that potential conflicts are being managed. Therefore, all faculty and certain staff members are required to complete conflict of interest disclosure forms upon appointment, annually thereafter on or before April 15, and at any time their outside interests change. Individual researchers may also be required to complete an online training module concerning conflicts of interest that covers the following information: various types of COI; underlying ethical principles associated with COI; risks of unmanaged COI; management tools, including special regulations for human and animal subject research; University and federal COI policies; requirements to disclose outside interests; and sanctions for violation of COI policies. Without question, a current COI form must be on file with the University of Pittsburgh Conflict of Interest Office before a research study can begin. Note, however, that in the event of conflicts of interest, the University’s COI Office is willing to work with investigators to develop a management plan that satisfies all parties so the research can continue.
Compliance Training and Education
In order to proceed with an animal research study and submit a protocol to the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), the principal investigator, key research personnel, and research coordinator(s) must have completed the following online training modules and environmental health and safety requirements: Research Integrity, Use of Laboratory Animals in Research and Teaching, Animal Exposure Surveillance Program, and Agent Registration Workbook offered through the University of Pittsburgh’s Internet-based Studies in Education and Research program. Investigators using rodents in their teaching or research program must also complete the Small Animals Research and Training module. Investigators using large animals or primates in their research require video training. For more information, contact Julie Cursi, IACUC training coordinator: 412-383-1737 or cursija@pitt.edu.
