SEPTEMBER 2005 NEWS

Call for Proposals on Rodent Housing Density

The ACLAM (American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine) has announced a special solicitation of research proposals on rodent housing density. The deadline for full applications is November 15, 2005. In addition to the following instructions for this RFP, you can review Grant Application Tips on the ACLAM web site.

ACLAM FOUNDATION GRANT INFORMATION

The Mission of the ACLAM Foundation is to expand the body of knowledge in the field of Laboratory Animal Science and Medicine through the funding of research grants. For this RFP, the ACLAM Foundation is requesting a full grant proposal, rather than a preliminary letter of intent.

With this Special RFP, the Foundation is seeking to fund studies investigating size and density requirements for rodent housing (primary enclosures). The goal is to generate new information relevant to best practices and/or scientific validity with regard to standards of rodent housing. This knowledge could aid governmental regulatory bodies in establishing standards that benefit both the research animals and the biomedical community. The applications should evaluate the effect of cage space on animal behavior and physiology. Applications must identify a methodical, step-wise approach to the study. The effects of environmental enrichment on cage space may be included in the design. Findings must be interpreted within the context of the study parameters to limit potential misinterpretation of findings. Statistically significant effects must be interpreted with respect to likely biological significance.

Successful grantees must agree to provide summary research reports in lay language suitable for inclusion in ACLAM Foundation communications, fund raising solicitations, and the ACLAM Newsletter, and are encouraged to publish their results in peer-reviewed journals.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

Full Grant Proposal
Thirty (30) copies of the full proposal must arrive no later than November 15, 2005. Notification should be made by e-mail to indicate that the grant application is in route. Please attach an electronic copy of the grant to your e-mail message.

Eligible Applicants
The principal investigator (PI) must hold a doctoral-level degree (DVM/VMD, MD, DDS, PhD or equivalent). Investigators from outside the USA are encouraged to apply. PIs from outside the US should contact the Foundation Scientific Director to discuss how they will comply with: (1) the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee requirement; and (2) the ILAR Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.

Intent
The full grant proposal should be designed to convince the reviewers that the applicant has formulated a significant question and has developed a logical research plan and knowledgeable research team to answer the question. Specifically comment on the relevance of the proposed study to advance scientific knowledge in the fields of laboratory animal science and medicine and/or to benefit the health and well being of laboratory animals. In particular for this Special RFP, applications should evaluate the effect of rodent cage space (housing density) on behavior and physiology, using caging standards as outlined in "the Guide" as a control or standard condition. Applications must identify a methodical, step-wise approach to the study. Findings must be interpreted within the context of the study parameters to limit potential misinterpretation of findings. Statistically significant effects must be interpreted with respect to likely biological significance.

Format
The full proposal document must comply with the format of the form provided:

three form pages that include project title, institutional contact information and signatures, investigator names, budget, facilities, and major equipment information
the body of the proposal can not exceed six letter size pages, including figures and tables
10 point type or larger, 0.8 inch margins on all sides
strict attachment limits are detailed below

Content
The full proposal must include:

background and the relevance of the project
review of the study question and specific research objectives
description of the research plan, with a time span (one year maximum)
detailed budget, not to exceed $25,000 [PI salary requests are discouraged but are allowable up to 5% of salary; total salary requests representing the major budget item are also discouraged; budget separately for animal purchase and per diem costs.] [The Foundation does not provide money for administrative overhead, indirect costs, major equipment, travel, or graduate student fees/tuition.]
pre-approval from the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) at the institution where the animal experiment(s) will be conducted

attachments are strictly limited to:

two-page résumé for the PI. Please include relevant publications and other research funding. (It is not required that the Foundation form be used.)
one page résumé for each co-PI or collaborator. Please include relevant publications and research funding. (It is not required that our form be used.)
one page pre-approval from the IACUC (International investigators will receive additional instructed by the Foundation staff.)
one page of references

Review Process
Reviewers will evaluate full proposals based on:

scientific merit
consistency with the mission of the Foundation and response to the RFP (see page 1)
expertise of the investigators and collaborators
appropriate animal use (compliance with the ILAR Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals)
feasibility of completion within the grant time limit (one year from the date of award)
adequacy of research facilities
appropriateness of the budget.

Conditions of Award
Grants are made to host institutions, not to individual investigators or their department. Accordingly, full proposals must bear the signature of an official authorized to sign for the applicant institution. The principal investigator must hold a doctoral-level degree (DVM/VMD, MD, DDS, PhD or equivalent). Grants are funded on an annual basis. The Foundation does not provide money for administrative overhead, indirect costs, major equipment, travel, or graduate student fees/tuition. The Foundation recognizes that technician salaries may be justified, but discourages PI salary requests (unless mandated by the host institution) and total salary requests that represent the major budget item. Future funding is dependent on research progress and a subsequent application to the ACLAM Foundation.

Funded grant awards will be announced on the ACLAM web site (www.aclam.org) and to successful grantees by written letter in early January 2006. Seventy-five percent of funding is provided at the time the grant is awarded. For payment of the last 25% of funding, a summary research report is required in lay language suitable for inclusion in ACLAM Foundation reports, fund raising solicitations and the ACLAM Newsletter. The Foundation Scientific Director must receive the final report no later than 90 days after the one-year anniversary of the grant award. Grant recipients are encouraged to publish their results in peer-reviewed journals and to present poster presentations at the ACLAM Forum during the year after funding for research project has been completed. The Foundation Scientific Director will provide guidance on ACLAM Forum poster presentations. If the investigator is unable to attend the forum, a poster that presents the research results is still requested for display at the Forum. Research publications must acknowledge the support of the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine Foundation.

If you have any questions, contact Dr. Greg Boivin, ACLAM Foundation Scientific Director, at boivingp@ucmail.uc.edu.