Because
rodents from other institutions frequently carry a number of infectious agents
not present in rodents resident at Einstein, quarantine is required for all
rodents coming from non-commercial sources, including research areas of
commercial vendors. This page will answer many of the questions that faculty
and collaborators have regarding rodent quarantine.
Which rodents must go through quarantine?
All
rodents arriving from other institutions, research areas of commercial vendors,
and rodents arriving from newly approved commercial animal vendors (with which
we do not have previous experience).
But my rodents are coming from a "clean" pathogen-free
source, why must they go through quarantine?
Animals
housed at Einstein are specific pathogen free. We have an extensive quality
assurance program to sustain their health status. The rodent quality assurance
programs of other institutions vary widely in quality and frequency. Even when
we are provided with health information prior to shipment, that information is
“historical”. Even if animals are "clean" when shipped, contamination
may occur en route on commercial carriers or from surface contamination during
the packing process.
How long does quarantine last? May I begin to breed my rodents
during this time?
If animals
are found to be "clean" or only infected with agents accepted into
the Einstein facilities, quarantine
usually lasts 6-8 weeks. After the
second week of quarantine, you may begin to breed your animals. You may add
"clean" rodents from commercial sources as mates. If you need to add
rodents from Einstein animal rooms, please fill out a "Request
for Internal Animal Transfer" form and consult with
Dr. Herbst prior to moving the rodents. Animals in quarantine must be handled
last each day that they are handled. Never enter other animal housing areas
after you have handled quarantine animals. Never relocate your rodents in
quarantine without our permission.
What happens to my rodents in quarantine? Why does quarantine take
6 or more weeks?
During
quarantine we make sure that your new rodents will not introduce infectious
agents into Einstein animal colonies. To ensure that pathogenic bacteria (such
as Mycoplasma pulmonis) and murine viruses (such as Mouse Hepatitis Virus) are
not introduced, we will test serum from our sentinels. Sentinels will be
placed with your animals during the second week that they are in quarantine, so
that sentinels will be exposed to any persistent
infections and any infections that your animals may have been exposed to in
transit. The sentinel animals that we purchase
are young, female animals with white fur from "clean" commercial
sources. If your animals are white in color, we
will usually mark the sentinels by ear punch or indelible ink on the tail, to
allow easy identification. After sentinels spend at least two weeks co-housed with your animals, we sample them to allow time
for them to seroconvert, and for certain parasites to complete their life cycle from eggs to adults.
Because
antemortem tests for fur mites and pinworms have a high rate of false negative
results, we treat all animals
undergoing
quarantine for parasites. To reduce the possibility of introducing fur mites into
Einstein mouse colonies, all mice are treated with diclorovos in the cage top.
Fur mites and pinworms are absent from Einstein colonies. These parasites are prevalent
in animal facilities worldwide, although the source institution may not be
aware of the infestation. We provide fenbendazole feed to your mice on arrival
for the duration of quarantine, to combat pinworms. Fenbendazole is a broad
spectrum anthelmintic that is safe, and widely used by animal facilities to
treat pinworms. To ensure that parasites are gone by the end of quarantine, we
check fur samples microscopically and peri-anal tape test both index animals
and contact sentinels prior to release from quarantine.
Because sentinel exposure and parasite treatment must
occur, the quarantine process takes at least 6 weeks and it may be 8 or more
weeks before all test results have been received.
How do I arrange for quarantine of rodents? How can I know when my
animals have arrived and when they have completed quarantine?
Quarantine
space is assigned by Dr. Herbst. Because there is usually a wait for quarantine
space, a queue is kept based upon the date of request. To arrange for quarantine,
send an e-mail request to Dr.
Herbst. A brief questionnaire is available on the IAS
Forms web page. Alternatively, the questionnaire is available
in the IAS Handout Center, Van Etten 460 and should be returned to Dr. Herbst's
mailbox. The questionnaire contains information essential to schedule the
quarantine group. Unless you make other arrangements, Dr. Herbst will contact
veterinarians at the source institution to obtain the most recent health
information. Health information must be provided prior to assigning quarantine space.
The Animal Acquisitions Clerk will inform you when your animals arrive and they
will be unpacked by IAS staff into the assigned quarantine cubicle in one of
the animal facilities. Dr. Herbst will contact you when animals have completed
quarantine to arrange for a permanent housing location.
What if my animals are infected with agents not present in
Einstein colonies?
Unexpected
test results may necessitate euthanasia if they cannot be rederived or if the
animals are infected with an agent infectious to humans. If your animals are
persistently infected with viral agents, it may be necessary to re-derive them.
This may require shipping your animals to an offsite vendor. Some agents (i.e.
Theiler's Murine Encephalomyelitis Virus - GDVII) must always be presumed to
persist and some types of animals fail to clear viral infections (i.e.
immunocompromised animals). Additionally, genetically-manipulated rodents
(transgenic or knock-out) frequently have undetected partial immunodeficiencies
which unpredictably impair viral clearance mechanisms. For these reasons, index
animals are exposed to immunocompetent sentinels and quarantine groups are
individually guided through the process to reduce the possibility that unwanted
agents are introduced into Einstein animal colonies.
Sometimes
animals arrive with agents not endemic to any rodents at Einstein. If animals
are expected to arrive infected with "unacceptable" organisms, you
may be permitted to "use up" your animals terminally while they
remain housed in quarantine. Animals being used terminally should be handled
(and killed) only in the BSL2 hood designated by IAS (contact IAS for location). Additional decontamination procedures may be needed if animals
are to be moved to your laboratory for terminal use. Please consult Dr. Herbst
to determine what decontamination procedures are needed for your animals. If we
have agreed that you will use your animals terminally in quarantine, please use
them up promptly by the specified deadline, as other groups are waiting to
utilize the cubicle, and because they pose a risk to the colonies at Einstein.
Animals in quarantine must be handled last each day that they are handled. This
is especially important to remember when you are bringing in animals known to
be infected with agents not endemic to animals at Einstein. Never enter other
animal housing areas after you have handled quarantine animals.
Agents
excluded from ALL of our animal colonies include mousepox (Ectromelia) virus,
lymphocytic choriomeningitis
virus (LCMV), Hantaviruses, mouse hepatitis virus (MHV), mouse rotaviruses
(EDIM), GDVII (Murine Encephalomyelitis virus, Theiler's), Mycoplasma pulmonis,
Mycoplasma arthritidis, Sendai Virus, Pneumonia Virus of Mice, Mouse Adenovirus
(both serotypes), Minute virus of Mice, mouse parvoviruses, murine cytomegalovirus,
exogenous murine retroviruses, fur mites (Radfordia, Myobia and Myocoptes), pinworms
(Aspiculuris and Syphacia), Rat coronavirus, Rat parvoviruses, and other agents.