IACUC / LARC STANDARD PROCEDURES

BROMODEOXYURIDINE (BRDU) TREATMENT OF MICE

Description of procedure:
Mice will be given BrdU in the drinking water (0.25-1 mg/ml) daily for up to 6 weeks or alternatively as daily i.p. injections (~2 mg in 100µl of sterile saline) for up to 1 week. BrdU-containing water bottles must be shielded from light to prevent BrdU degradation and the water is replaced twice per week. 1% glucose may be included in the drinking water during the first week to overcome taste aversion.  Total duration of the procedure is 1 hr to 6 weeks, after which animals are euthanized.

Mice will be evaluated 3-4 times per week for the first week, and weekly thereafter for general appearance, ability to move normally around cage and reach food and water, ability to eat and drink, grooming habits, skin color, lethargy, aggression (animals will be housed individually if aggressive behavior is shown). Mice will be evaluated by the Body Condition Scoring (BCS) index.

Literature search words required:
In the section “Justifications and Alternatives” in RIO you must include key words for potentially painful procedures. Literature search was performed for refinement of this Standard Procedure on Sept 23, 2009:

Key Words	Search Site	Years Covered
Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU)	Pibmed	1958-2009
Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU)	Google	No Limit

Agents:
Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU)
All agents administered to animals should be listed in the “Agents” section of RIO.

Adverse Effects:

Adverse Effects
Procedure, Agent or Phenotype	Potential Adverse Effects	Management
BrdU in drinking water	Aversion/dehydration	euthanasia
ip injections	Infection from multiple injections	euthanasia

Monitoring Parameters
Monitoring Parameters	Frequency	PI/Lab will Document
Appearance/activity	3-4 times week first week then Weekly	No
Ability to move around cage/eat & drink	3-4 times first week then Weekly	No
Body condition score less than or equal to 2	3-4 times first week then Weekly	Yes

Describe the conditions, complications, and criteria (e.g. uncontrolled infection, loss of more than 15% body weight, etc.) that would lead to removal of an animal from the study, and describe how this will be accomplished (e.g. stopping treatment, euthanasia).

Mice with Body Condition score less than or equal to 2 will be euthanized.

For all investigators housing animals with tumor formation, skin lesions, neurological deficits, or that are in Category E, list the expected characteristics/clinical presentations and endpoints of the animal model and the criteria for euthanasia. Note: The IACUC also requires such lists to be posted in the respective animal rooms and monitored by the IACUC compliance staff and LARC, to assure PI adherence to the endpoints listed.