Animal Subjects (IACUC)
NIH OLAW Animal Welfare Assurance: D16-00419 is approved from 2/14/2022 through 4/30/25.
PIs, faculty, staff, students, and IACUC members involved in the care and/or use of any vertebrate animals in the laboratory or the field must complete CITI modules listed as required for the program's course entitled "Investigators, Staff and Students-Working with the IACUC" under the "Laboratory Animal Welfare" curriculum every three years, whether the research is funded or unfunded. The PI is responsible for ensuring all such personnel are named on the PI's IACUC protocol and have completed the above modules as well as additional appropriate levels of training. The PI is also responsible for retaining the CITI completion certificates on file for all such personnel. In addition, all personnel whose work involves activities with fish, whether funded or unfunded, must complete the CITI modules titled either "Working with Fish in Research Settings" or "I work with Zebrafish: Danio rerio".
To request Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) approval for a project, login to SPARCS. A PI may create and submit a protocol for committee review allowing ample time for protocol review before the projected protocol beginning date (3-4 weeks). Research may not commence until an approved protocol has been reviewed and ruled active.
Please do not wait until you receive a protocol expiration notice and expect to have the protocol reviewed overnight or even within a week. Protocols are provided to the entire committee for review and this takes time to accomplish.
Often, amendments are required. This will take additional time for the approval process.
PIs who obtain external funding for projects must provide an active protocol number, title, and date of approval to their Sponsored Program Administrator prior to a Banner index being established for use. Annually, the researcher should update the protocol approval date with their Sponsored Program Administrator.
There must be congruence between the funded sponsored program narrative and the approved protocol.
Faculty who do not submit annual renewals in a timely manner are subject to fiscal account(s) being frozen until the annual review has been submitted/ approved.
Please note: annual renewals are not automatic. APHIS interprets continuing reviews as a monitoring process conducted in an effort to determine that a study remains in compliance. This process is performed annually. Three year protocols that are not submitted for annual review/approval will be deemed to be out of compliance.
Note to VIMS Researchers: All compliance correspondence will be sent to your W&M email address. Visit the IT website for instructions on forwarding your W&M email to your VIMS address.
For questions about IACUC procedures or forms, please email [[cacorb, Cindy Corbett]] or call 221-3966.
About IACUC
- Committee Membership
- OLAW Guidance on Animal Care
- AVMA Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals: 2020 Edition after October 1, 2020
- The 3 Rs of Alternatives: Reduction, Refinement, Replacement
- PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals FAQ's
- IACUC Policy and Procedures for Research and Teaching Involving Live Vertebrate Animals
- Occupational Health and Safety Program for Animal Care and Use (pdf)
- IACUC Posting Form (pdf) must be posted in all the rooms where animals are kept.
Federal Regulations and Compliance
- NIH video training on Aseptic Techniques. This course addresses four areas of basic instruction for aseptic surgery: procedure area setup, sterile instrument prep, animal prep, and surgical attire and gloving.
- OLAW--NIH Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (contains basic documents concerning the protection of animal subjects)
- The Office of Research Integrity (HORI) promotes integrity in biomedical and behavioral research supported by the Public Health Service (PHS) at about 4,000 institutions worldwide. HORI monitors institutional investigations of research misconduct and facilitates the responsible conduct of research through educational, preventive, and regulatory activities.
Useful Laboratory Animal Care and Use Sites
- American Association for Laboratory Animal Science (AALAS)
- Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC.org)
- Track APHIS/AC rules and notices in the Federal Register
- 2020 Update to AVMA Guidelines on Euthanasia
- Guidelines to the Use of Wild Birds in Research (pdf)
- Guidelines for Use of Fishes in Research (pdf)
- Guidelines for Use of Live Amphibians and Reptiles in Field Research (pdf)
- Xenopus levis report (pdf)
- PowerPoint presentations and training videos/DVDs (xls) currently available through the W&M Environment Health & Safety Office. If a training topic is not on the list, please inquire with EHS as to availability.
- SPARCS Documentation for Animal Oversight (IACUC)