250079 - Contract for the Provision of Laboratory Animal Health Monitoring Services in Compliance with FELASA Guidelines

• Value: £280K

This Lot will cover the provision of health monitoring services for sentinel animals using traditional sacrificial sampling methods. Activities under this Lot will include: • Provision of validated sample collection kits and consumables for sentinel programmes. • Testing of sentinel animal samples (including serology, parasitology, and microbiology) in accordance with FELASA recommendations. • Reporting of results with interpretation and expert advice where required. Please note: It is the University’s strategic aim to phase out the use of sacrificial sentinel animals over the life of this contract, in line with the 3Rs principle of Replacement, Reduction, and Refinement. Contractors should support this goal by advising on alternative approaches.

• Value: £280K

This Lot will cover provision of non-animal or environmental monitoring methods to replace or reduce the need for sentinel animals. Activities under this Lot will include: • Environmental sampling programmes (e.g. exhaust air dust (EAD) testing or soiled bedding PCR sampling). • Provision of all necessary equipment, kits, and consumables for non-animal monitoring. • Testing and reporting of environmental samples to FELASA-compliant standards. • Advice on the design and implementation of sentinel-free health monitoring programmes. Please note: In conjunction with the University’s aim to reduce or phase out our reliance on sentinel animal testing (lot 1), this element of the contract (lot 2) may increase over the lifetime of the contract.

• Value: £140K

This Lot will cover health monitoring services for zebrafish colonies which we expect to have late 2025, early 2026. Activities under this Lot will include: • Provision of appropriate sampling kits and guidance for zebrafish health monitoring (e.g. screening for Mycobacterium spp. and other relevant pathogens). • Testing of submitted samples in accordance with FELASA-AALAS health monitoring recommendations (DOI: 10.30802/AALAS-CM-22-000034). The ability to screen for Viral Haemorrhagic Septicaemia and Spring Viremia of Carp (SVC) would also be valuable and may become of relevance during the course of this contract. Detailed reporting with interpretation and recommendations for colony management.