Return to flip book view

Institute of Animal TechnologyBulletinVol 55 No 5 May 2019G RSPCA Report G Charity BallG Council News G New Wales and West BranchG Animal Tech Month G Diary Dates

EDITOR*Carole Wilsonbulletineditor@iat.org.ukASSISTANT EDITOR*Karen Dunfordbulletinassistant@iat.org.ukADVERTISEMENTMANAGERSPRC Associates Ltdmail@prcassoc.co.ukPublished monthly by theInstitute of Animal Technology*Registered Office:5 South ParadeSummertownOxfordOX2 7JLISSN 0263-2861For enquiries other thanBulletin related contact:IAT ADMINISTRATOR*admin@iat.org.ukor 0800 085 4380BulletinVol 55 No 5 May 2019Final copy date forJuly Bulletin1st JuneThe opinions expressed in theBulletin do not necessarily reflectthose of the Editor or theInstitute.CONTENTSDear Readers 5Council Meeting 7-8Animal Technologist Month 9at FERARSPCA Avoiding Mortality 12-13in Animal Research andTestingAnimal Technologist Month 15at MRC CambridgeIAT/AS-ET Charity Ball 16West of Scotland AGM 19-22Wales and West Branch 25-27ReportDiary Dates 31

BulletinMay 2019• 5DDeeaarr RReeaaddeerrssHave we all enjoyed Technologist Month and,for those of us who went, Congress? I can’t believe it isall over for another year. Our Congress report will be out in the Bulletin nextmonth but we are starting to receive news of your TechMonth activities, see page 9 and the front cover forFERA’s Tech Month picture competition and page 15 forsome chocolate prizes being handed out at theCambridge MRC LMB to their puzzle prize winners!Keep your Tech Month news coming in. I look forwardto publishing more!We are also welcoming a new branch this month – Wales and the West. Readall about their formation and inaugural AGM on page 25-27. I would reallylike to hear more about Mike Bruford’s genetic profiling of endangeredspecies, perhaps he is a potential future speaker at Congress? Our other AGMreport takes us further north and you can read the report of the West ofScotland branch on pages 19-22, their speakers also raising some veryimportant points.Now that most branches have had their AGMs and both Tech Month andCongress are over for another year, perhaps you are feeling bereft of things todo? If so, can I point you in the direction of the West Middlesex’s River Cruise,page 23 or NEE Branch’s York Maze, page 24.I should also point out, that for one lucky person Congress is not quite over.See page 28, for one raffle prize that was not claimed – is it yours? N.B. On a much more serious note, Karen Dunford has produced an article onthe RSPCA report on avoiding mortality in animal research. The report is verythought-provoking. See pages 12-13 for more information.Next month we shall be back with a bumper Congress edition of the Bulletin.KKeeeepp RReeaaddiinngg!!CCaarroollee

BulletinMay 2019• 7IAT Council meeting Wednesday 20th March 2019Andrew Blake Tribute Award (ABTA)The ABTA is offered every year to an Animal Technologist at any level, who isjudged to have made a significant contribution to improving laboratory animalwelfare. The original request by Andrew Blake of the award was to rewardthose whose primary role is the care of animal used in laboratory science andencourage the implementation of the latest animal welfare practices. Therehad been an enquiry as to whether this award could be opened up to“youngish PhD students” for 2020, when there would be a joint IAT/LASA/LAVAAST2020 event taking place. Council felt that there is little enough on offer foranimal technologists as it is and plenty of opportunity for graduates to applyfor academic related awards. Council decided to continue the ABTA in itsoriginal purpose, and only be open to those whose primary role is caring foranimals used in laboratory science.In order to promote the award, a separate website is being set up, with a linkfrom the IAT website. Details on how to apply and examples of previouswinning entries will be displayed.Animal Welfare GroupThe Animal Welfare Group have published a Feeding and Watering GuidanceNote. This has now been turned into a booklet, which will be circulated withthe April ATW and will also be available at Congress 2019.The Animal Welfare Group have also set up an Animal Technologist ExchangeProgramme, similar in concept to the NACWO Exchange Programme. Detailscan be found on the IAT website and an online application process can also befound there.Tech MonthThe Communications Group have been working with the Website Coordinatorto produce quizzes during Tech Month. Response has been very good.Organisations are also sending in their photographs of events they have held,and these will be published on the website and in future publications.Members’ E-NewsletterIf you are not receiving e-newsletters from the IAT, it may be that you did notreply to the GDPR emails, opting in to receive communications via email. Youcan go to the IAT website and sign up there to receive updates and e-newsletters.

Bulletin8 •May 2019Registration and Accreditation BoardThe Registration and Accreditation Board were delighted to announce thateight successful RAnTech interviews had taken place over the previous twodays, six at Sheffield and two in London. The successful candidates were:Joanne Bland Carl Wright Jane CardwellMatthew Cardwell Beka Armstrong Rachel SandyFrancesca Flack Marie HitchamThree more RAnTech interviews will take place during Congress 2019.If you are interested in taking the RAnTech interview, you can apply online viathe IAT website. You will need to be MIAT or FIAT and have a minimum of twoyears’ animal technology experience post qualification. Details and guidancenotes can be found on the website or by contacting the IAT Administrator(admin@iat.org.uk)Congress 2019The App for Congress 2019 and delegates are encouraged to download thisprior to arrival at Congress. It is a great way to keep track of what ishappening and where, plus create your own itinerary for workshops, papersetc.Workshops can be booked online and are proving very popular once again.IAT 70th Anniversary celebrationsThe IAT 70th Anniversary will take place in 2020, which also coincides with the10th Anniversary of AS-ET. As part of the celebrations for this momentous year,there will be a celebratory ball. This will take place on Saturday 21st November,at a Central London venue. Tickets are on sale for £95 per head.Other events will be held to celebrate the IAT’s 70th anniversary. Details will beavailable on the IAT website as events are confirmed.IAT Graduation 2019The IAT HE Graduation ceremony will take place on Wednesday 3rd July. AStakeholders meeting will be held in the morning and the GraduationCeremony will take place in the afternoon. Again, details will be available onthe IAT website.The next meeting of the IAT Council will take place in May 2019.

BulletinMay 2019• 9Animal Technologist Month at FERA ScienceFERA Science based in York celebrated ‘Animal Technologist Month’ in Marchby holding an animal photograph competition which was judged by theAWERB. Each AWERB member had 3 gold stars to award to their favouritephotograph. The overall winner was Kelly Hunter with runner up DwightMartin, who were each awarded a gift voucher. Everyone who enteredreceived a chocolate squirrel. Here are the winning entries and commendedphotographs for each category. Reporter: Patricia PimlottAWERB members judgingthe photosCamouflage by Kelly HunterCorn on the cob by Kelly HunterHappy chomping by Dwight MartinTreat time by Dwight MartinSpecsavers by Dwight MartinBed-time by Nikki CookActimel mouse house by Nikki CookCosy chick under red lightby Matt Gale

Bulletin12 •May 2019 RSPCA Avoiding Mortality in Animal Researchand TestingReport by Karen DunfordThe RSPCA have been protecting and advocating for animals for almost 200years. One of the more recent RSPCA initiatives to protect laboratory animalshas been a focus on the severe severity limit and ways in which to refineresearch in order to avoid its use altogether. There have been a number ofconferences and workshops on this topic. The most recent one focussed onavoiding mortality, as it is considered to be an actual severity of severe. TheRSPCA have recently published a lengthy report on the workshop which is nowavailable online. The report covers a number of different topics including case studies,suggestions, and resources. It is divided into seven headings: the backgroundfor refining severe severity, reasons to avoid mortality – ways to approach thisgoal and issues that hinder the goal, ethics committees, a wish list of what tosee in the future, and action points that should be taken. The background and reasoning behind avoiding mortality in animals used forresearch are both logical and ethical ones. Under the UK legislation, death asan endpoint should be avoided as much as possible. The report rightly pointsout that an animal that has died from the procedure is not one of any use. Asa scientific data point, it is more valuable pre-mortem. Ethical, it is quite clear:the expected death of any animal due to a scientific procedure is an ethicaland moral quandary that requires a very strong benefit analysis. The RSPCAand those who attended the workshop agreed that death as an endpointshould never be accepted. In order to avoid mortality in future work, there are some challenges that needto be identified and addressed. A particularly interesting one, albeit short, wasin some cases, it is a requirement set out by editors of peer reviewed journals.The report queries if this is due to a historical holdover (‘this has always beendone this way’) and points out that it is time to challenge these requirements. The report discussed welfare assessments in animal facilities and how theyneed to be reviewed and updated on a regular basis and it provided someuseful resources. These include the International Mouse PhenotypingConsortium database, which provides information on phenotypes for variedfields of studying and can aid in welfare assessment of regulated procedures.

This idea is something that has historically been happening in animal facilitiesfor example the creation of the grimace scale and other resources provided inthe report are evidence of this. The report offers up a case of one study thatwas able to reduce its severity banding by simply increasing monitoringfrequency, as the timings of the assessments gave more information. Even smallchanges such as these can make a difference to animal welfare. Training was also addressed in the report and this is a key point in anything todo with animals in research. Competency plays a vital role in animal welfare, asresearchers and technicians should always be trained to the highest standardand are expected to be able to quickly identify any adverse effects or problemsthat arise. Mistakes made due to poor training have the potential to have direconsequences to the animals in experiments, especially in the type ofprocedures that are the focus of this report: mortality as the endpoint. Again,the report provides a large resource for further training – the HumaneEndpoints website is one example. The report acknowledges the difficulty in addressing some of the issues raised.The example given is that welfare assessments may cause stress to the animals,particularly those in a high severity banding. Ageing studies are also discussedas there are acceptable clinical expressions that may be related to old age butwould also be a potential endpoint in younger individuals. The report ends with both a wish list and a comprehensive set of action pointsin order to help researchers avoid mortality in severe procedures. Many of thewishes such as online lexica of welfare terms and some need further researchand development to make them viable in all animal units, examples such asreal time digital monitoring. The action points included many that arefocussing on a change in how research with animals is conducted, for examplerequiring journals to always include mortality and numbers in publishedpapers. The RSPCA has again challenged the status quo on acceptable mortality insevere banded regulated procedures. With many people within the fieldalready doing this and encouraging the 3Rs, there is potential for the RSPCA toreach its goal. The report can be read in full atview.pagetiger.com/RSPCAAvoidingMortalityResearchReport/RSPCABulletinMay 2019• 13

BulletinMay 2019• 15Technician MonthCongratulations to the puzzle winners at MRC Cambridge –Jeroen Willems, Ping Gong, Liam Bray and Darren Egan!Submitted by Helen Cooper

BulletinMay 2019• 17AS-ET is a charity to advance education and promote excellence in the careand welfare of animals used in science. Sponsors of AS-ET are listed below and to find out more please visit thewebsite www.as-et.org.ukAS-ET is a charity set up to advance education and promote excellence inthe care and welfare of animals used in science.To see how you can apply for a bursary visit our website (www.as-et.org.uk)The companies listed below sponsor AS-ET. If you would like to join themfind out how to support us by looking at our website.BulletinMay 2014• 15AS-ET is a charity set up to advance education and promote excellence inthe care and welfare of animals used in science.To see how you can apply for a bursary visit our website (www.as-et.org.uk)The companies listed below sponsor AS-ET. If you would like to join themfind out how to support us by looking at our website.BulletinMay 2014• 15AS-ET is a charity set up to advance education and promote excellence inthe care and welfare of animals used in science.To see how you can apply for a bursary visit our website (www.as-et.org.uk)The companies listed below sponsor AS-ET. If you would like to join themfind out how to support us by looking at our website.BulletinMay 2014• 15AS-ET is a charity set up to advance education and promote excellence inthe care and welfare of animals used in science.To see how you can apply for a bursary visit our website (www.as-et.org.uk)The companies listed below sponsor AS-ET. If you would like to join themfind out how to support us by looking at our website.BulletinMay 2014• 15AS-ET is a charity set up to advance education and promote excellence inthe care and welfare of animals used in science.To see how you can apply for a bursary visit our website (www.as-et.org.uk)The companies listed below sponsor AS-ET. If you would like to join themfind out how to support us by looking at our website.BulletinMay 2014• 15AS-ET is a charity set up to advance education and promote excellence inthe care and welfare of animals used in science.To see how you can apply for a bursary visit our website (www.as-et.org.uk)The companies listed below sponsor AS-ET. If you would like to join themfind out how to support us by looking at our website.BulletinMay 2014• 15AS-ET is a charity set up to advance education and promote excellence inthe care and welfare of animals used in science.To see how you can apply for a bursary visit our website (www.as-et.org.uk)The companies listed below sponsor AS-ET. If you would like to join themfind out how to support us by looking at our website.BulletinMay 2014• 15AS-ET is a charity set up to advance education and promote excellence inthe care and welfare of animals used in science.To see how you can apply for a bursary visit our website (www.as-et.org.uk)The companies listed below sponsor AS-ET. If you would like to join themfind out how to support us by looking at our website.BulletinMay 2014• 15AS-ET is a charity set up to advance education and promote excellence inthe care and welfare of animals used in science.To see how you can apply for a bursary visit our website (www.as-et.org.uk)The companies listed below sponsor AS-ET. If you would like to join themfind out how to support us by looking at our website.BulletinMay 2014• 15AS-ET is a charity set up to advance education and promote excellence inthe care and welfare of animals used in science.To see how you can apply for a bursary visit our website (www.as-et.org.uk)The companies listed below sponsor AS-ET. If you would like to join themfind out how to support us by looking at our website.BulletinMay 2014• 15

BulletinMay 2019• 19West of Scotland Branch AGM 22nd February 2019On Friday afternoon, we took the train from Dundee to Glasgow to attend theIAT West of Scotland AGM. AGM audienceAGM refreshments

Bulletin20 •May 2019When everyone had arrived John Marshall, Home Office Inspector, talkedabout the provision of food and water and reducing the risk of non-compliance. Although non-compliance is decreasing, failure to provide foodand water remains around 10% of non-compliances, food being the cause inmost cases. It was revealed that a lack of food and water is often discovered onMondays, suggesting extra care should be taken when performing weekendchecks. John described more effective methods for carrying out the checks, forexample performing them twice daily with different members of staff doingeach. It was also recommended that physically touching the food hoppers andwater bottles may help identify any low levels.Ray Carragher, University of Strathclyde biostatistician, was next to present. Hehighlighted the importance of randomisation and blinding in experiments. Raystressed that it is important that these should be incorporated into the studyplan by the researcher. Randomisation; choosing your animals at random, willprevent selective bias. Blinding; when conducting a study is not knowing whichanimals belong to which group and will prevent confirmation bias. Bias couldalter results, which is why it is important to include randomisation and blindingin a study.Abigail Brown, NVS for the University of Glasgow, discussed the variousmethods of Schedule 1. It was pointed out that the animals may be under a lotof stress before they are euthanised, this may be due to transporting/relocation, handling and separating the animals. These stresses should beminimised as much as possible. When it comes to surplus animals, allowingother researchers the opportunity to use the tissue would be beneficial andreduce waste. A list or electronic register system to give to the scientist wouldhelp achieve this.Michael Wilkinson, also an NVS for the University of Glasgow presented a talkMichael Wilkinson

BulletinMay 2019• 21on the significance of necropsy and when they should be carried out. Whenany animal is found dead, a necropsy should be completed to identify cause ofdeath. This is especially important if a procedure was performed on the animalprior to its death. It also answers scientific and veterinary questions if a sickanimal’s cadaver is submitted for a necropsy after it is euthanised should ithave undergone a procedure. Michael also commented that if a necropsy didnot provide the information on cause of death further examinations can beperformed, for example histopathology. Kevin O’Halloran, WoS BING representative, talked about Animal Tech month,which was taking place in March. The IAT website will have quizzes with prizesto be won throughout the month. Following the presentations, we had snacksand wine provided by Charles River followed by the WoS AGM. The minutesfrom the previous meeting were read out and then ideas for future eventswere suggested. Dundee technicians also announced they wanted to movefrom the Edinburgh branch to the West of Scotland branch. Once the AGM wasfinished we ended our evening with a few drinks in Merchant City and a mealat The Dhabba, a North Indian restaurant, where the menu looks like anewspaper, which was very novel! Wine was bought by Nathan fromAllentown and some drinks by Ian from Tecniplast. We had a great nightbefore running to catch the last train home. AGM menu

Bulletin22 •May 2019Thanks to our main sponsors Charles River and the impromptu ones, Allentownand Tecniplast.Reporter: Tara McLaughlinStudying the menu

Bulletin24 •May 2019

BulletinMay 2019• 25Wales and the West Branch ReportAwarm welcome from the new Wales and the West IAT branch. The newbranch opened in October 2018 at Cardiff University and over the pastseven months we have been busy arranging exciting events for our members. Our first inaugural AGM held in October was a huge success. The meetinggenerated lots of interest and was attended by both IAT members and non-members. The committee was officially elected and members voted for thebranch name. During the meeting, members shared ideas for futureeducational events and what the branch should look to achieve movingforward into 2019. Allentown sponsored the event; giving a presentation ontheir latest equipment and answering queries from technicians working directlywith several Allentown products.Our fantastic IAT branch and sponsors Allentown

Bulletin26 •May 2019In January 2019, we held our firsteducational event: a talk by ProfessorMike Bruford on how geneticprofiling is helping conservationefforts of endangered species aroundthe world. His team at CardiffUniversity and worldwidecollaborators are using geneticprofiling to create detailed familytrees and accurately count numbers ofendangered species. Mike and histeam have been researching whiterhinos in Africa, giant pandas in Asiaand Bornean orangutans. It wasexciting to hear how his research isbeing applied to breedingprogrammes, conservation efforts andused to further educate professionalsworking with these animals in theirnative countries. In February, we held our first AGM. We were delighted to have Elaine KirkumProfessor Mike Bruford, CardiffUniversityElaine Kirkum from AS-ET andbranch members at the AGM

BulletinMay 2019• 27as our guest speakersharing with us all thecrucial work AS-ET isinvolved in. Several ofour members hadpreviously benefittedfrom AS-ETscholarships to pursuefurther educationopportunities and itwas exciting to hearwhat opportunities areavailable right now toour members.If you are an IAT member in Wales and the South West of England look out forfuture events happening near you.Reporter: Oliver Newson7KLV 6XPPHU   VW RI -XO\  RXU 6HQLRU $FFRXQW0DQDJHU IRU6RXWKHUQ(XURSH'DYLG 0D\R LV SODQQLQJ WR UXQWKH GLVWDQFH IURP 0LOQJDYLH WR )RUW :LOOLDP  PLOHVNPV LQ XQGHU  GD\V FDUU\LQJ DOO KLV JHDU DQG IRRG RQ KLVEDFN 2Q WKH ODVW GD\ KH ZLOO DGG D FOLPE XS WR %HQ 1HYLVZHDWKHUSHUPLWWLQJ %HFDXVH ,'(;; %LR$QDO\WLFV YDOXHV WKH LPSRUWDQFH RIDGYDQFLQJ HGXFDWLRQDQGSURPRWLQJ H[FHOOHQFHLQWKH FDUH DQGZHOIDUH RI DQLPDOV HVSHFLDOO\ WKRVH XVHG LQ VFLHQFH 'DYLG LVFRPPLWWLQJWR WKLVFKDOOHQJH DQGKDV GHFLGHG WR IXQGUDLVH IRU$6-(7 $QLPDOV LQ 6FLHQFH ± (GXFDWLRQ 7UXVW $6-(7KDVGLVWULEXWHG QHDUO\LQ JUDQWV WR VXSSRUW HGXFDWLRQDQGZHOIDUH DFWLYLWLHV 5HDG PRUH DERXW WKHLU ZRUN KHUHZZZDQLPDOVLQVFLHQFHHGXFDWLRQWUXVWRUJXN 'RQDWLQJWKURXJK-XVW*LYLQJLVVLPSOHIDVWDQGWRWDOO\VHFXUH 7RGRQDWHSOHDVHYLVLW KWWSVZZZMXVWJLYLQJFRPIXQGUDLVLQJGDYLG-PD\R 7+$1.<28)25<2856833257 'DYLG¶V:HVW+LJKODQG:D\&KDOOHQJH )XQGUDLVLQJIRU$6-(7WKURXJK-XVW*LYLQJFRP Wales and the West Branch Committee

Bulletin28 •May 2019IAT Branch Raffleheld at Congress 2019Congratulations to all those who won prizes in the IAT BranchRaffle at Congress 2019.There was one prize left uncollected at the end of Congress, so if you stillhave your tickets, have a check to see if you won!The winning ticket is white, reference number AB 448105, and the ticketnumber is 251If that is your ticket, please contact the IAT Administrator(iat6262@gmail.com) who will arrange to forward on your prize.

Front cover: Corn on the Cob by Kelly HunterDIARY Dates10-13 June FELASA ConferencePragueDetails: http://www.felasa2019.eu17-19 JunePathology of Laboratory Animals Leiden, NetherlandsDetailshttps://www.fondazioneguidobernardini.org/en/programs/yearly-workshop-series-on-pathology-of-laboratory-animals-module-3-pathology-of-non-human-primates-pigs-and-ferrets-and-tree-shrews.html19 JuneLARNEdinburghDetails: http://www.lasa.co.uk/meetings/20 JuneAWERBs – moving forwardLondonDetails:https://forms.gle/Z3yV5h1UNmxTUAvv826-27 JuneNACWO CourseYorkDetails:info@learningcurvedevelopment.co.uk28 JuneThames Sundowner CruiseLondonSee page 233-6 JulyTecniplast Scientific Symposium ItalyDetails: info@tecniplastuk.com8 JulyLASA HOLTIFBirminghamDetails: info@lasa.co.uk13 JulyYork MazeYorkSee page 2416-17 JulyFRAME 50th AnniversarySymposiumNottinghamDetails:https://frame.org.uk/zkevent/frame-50th-anniversary-symposium/2 October NC3Rs/IAT SymposiumLondonDetails:https://www.nc3rs.org.uk/events/nc3rsiat-animal-technicians-symposium-201926-28 November LASA ConferenceBirminghamDetails: http://www.lasa.co.uk/meetings/202024-26 March AST2020 EdinburghDetails: https://www.ast2020.org3-4 July UFAW International Symposium BrugesDetails:www.ufaw.org.uk/ufawbruges2019BulletinMay 2019• 31