1. Animal Care Facilities at the Babraham Institute

2. Healthy Ageing Research
Babraham Institute scientists study immunology, epigenetics, and cell signalling. Our aim is to understand how changes in our body as we age affect our health.
This fits with the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) remit to support research which will lead to strategies for improving lifelong health and wellbeing, and thus reduce pressure on the health and social care systems.

3. Learning Outcomes All students will:
Develop solutions for challenges related to the care of research animals
Most students will:
Describe what needs to be considered for welfare of research animals
Some students will:
Explain how to balance openness with high standards of animal care
Key word/s
Openness, freedom, concordat

4. Babraham Institute research themes
Epigenetics – How reversible modifications to DNA can control access to genetic information. Epigenetic changes can be linked to ageing and the effects of our environment.
Signalling – How chemical pathways inside cells allow them to adapt their function and behaviour in response to changes in their surroundings. Control of these pathways can change with age and contribute to illnesses.
For more information -
Immunology – How cells in the immune system develop, specialise and are regulated to respond to infections. The strength of the immune response declines sharply with advancing age.

5. What are the Five Freedoms relating to research animals?
Freedom from hunger or thirst by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigour
Freedom from discomfort by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area
Freedom from pain, injury or disease by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment
Freedom to express (most) normal behaviour by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and company of the animal's own kind
Freedom from fear and distress by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering

6. How many of the Five Freedoms would also relate to animal care technicians?
Freedom from hunger or thirst by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigour
Freedom from discomfort by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area
Freedom from pain, injury or disease by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment
Freedom to express (most) normal behaviour by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and company of the animal's own kind
Freedom from fear and distress by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering

7. Babraham Institute’s Biological Support Unit
Our animal unit houses up to 50,000 mice which are used in scientific research programmes
The mice are kept in very clean conditions and to very high standards of care and hygiene
Four units around a central service area - each unit has:
A separate entrance
Different staff
A different purpose
A different health status

8. Unit 1: Specified Opportunist Pathogen Free
Mice are known to be free of a standard specified list of pathogens so they are of a known, high health status
Mice are housed in positive-pressure isolators
What does this mean?
Health status
Highest

9. Unit 2: Genetically modified mice
Breeding and maintenance of colonies
Mice are housed in individually ventilated cages
What do you think is the reason for this?
Health status
High

10. Unit 3: Experimental Facilities
Short-term housing of experimental groups
Mice are housed in individually ventilated cages
Health status
Mixed

11. Unit 4: Import of new animals
Containment 2 – mice may have infections e.g. Salmonella
Mice are housed in negative-pressure isolators
What does this mean?
Health status
Mixed
Biosafety level two would cover work with agents associated with human disease, in other words, pathogenic or infectious organisms posing a moderate hazard. Examples are the equine encephalitis viruses and HIV when performing routine diagnostic procedures or work with clinical specimens.

12. Central Services
We use robotic cage-washing technology and automated sterilisation to provide clean equipment and consumables to each of the animal holding areas.
Robot cage washer
Sterilisation methods:
Autoclave
Hydrogen peroxide
Formaldehyde gas

13. Challenge 1 - Design an ‘open’ Animal Unit
The Babraham Institute is a signatory of the Concordat on Openness on Animal Research and our animal facility has won awards for openness for schools projects and camera-based ‘virtual’ tours
We are keen to be as open as possible about our use of animals in our research
Challenge: Adapt our animal unit or design a new building to allow the public to visit in order to learn about our research and the high standards of care and welfare provided while ensuring health of the animals and safety of visitors and staff

14. What is important to consider?
How could you allow the public to view your facility but minimise or eliminate the risk of introducing disease?
What areas of the building do you think the public will be most interested in seeing?
What would you do to minimise disturbance to the animals, the daily work of the care staff or the research being conducted?
What other challenges can you identify and how would you prioritise them?

15. Challenge 2: Cage checking
Your challenge: Design a solution to allow the food and animal health in the top and bottom rows of cages in a rack to be efficiently checked with the minimum of risk to the technician. An alternative solution to avoid using footstools and ladders should be considered.

16. What is important to consider?
Being able to perform daily checks on animal health
Minimising disturbance to the animals
Health & Safety for staff – ergonomic design to prevent injury
Economics – balancing the cost of a solution with the gain for animals and/or technicians

17. Challenge 3: Build a model Cage Wash Robot
Challenge: Build a working LEGO model of a cage washing robot and create a set of instructions for use in other schools, science festivals and careers events.

18. What is important to consider?
Design & functionality – it must mimic the real robot
Instructions must be created to allow other schools or research institutions to create and use their own version.
Correct programming will enable the model to pick up and invert a series of ‘cages’ and put them down in another location

19. Summary There are Five Freedoms relating to research animals
Consideration should also be given to the health and well-being of animal care staff
Mice at the Babraham Institute are kept in very clean conditions and to very high standards of care and hygiene
There are four separate units within the Babraham Institute animal facility, with different functions and health status