OR-94-16-1 -- Environmental Management of Laboratory Animals: Research Needs PDF

Points out that recognising the research needs for laboratory animal faculty design and management is important for both cost-effective design of laboratory research animal facilities and the reliability of laboratory animal experiments. States that the Laboratory Animal Consortium consisting of representatives from various industries and organisations involved with laboratory animals has identified five major research priorities - the effects of microenvironmental conditions on the response of laboratory rats, the means for achieving appropriate ranges of environmental conditions, the environmental preferences of rats, the relationships between cage and room environmental conditions in typical laboratory animal facilities and caging systems and the practical methods for measuring cage environmental conditions. Discusses these major research priorities.

KEYWORDS: Environment, research, laboratories, laboratory animal housing