Presented by: Andrea McMillan, University of Otago at OHSIG 2014, Thursday 11/9/14, NZI Room 4, 2.15pm

1. Managing
Laboratory Animal
Allergy
Andrea McMillan

2. Laboratory Animal Allergy
• What is it?
• Who gets it?
• How do you stop it?

3. LAA – What is it?
• Inappropriate immune response to
harmless proteins
• Proteins found in the urine, saliva, fur and
skin cells of rats and mice
• Antibodies develop (IgE)
• Once the specific IgE is developed,
immune response triggered

4. LAA – What is it?
• Inflammatory reactions in tissues such as
the skin, eye, and upper and lower
respiratory system.
• Sensitising agent – occupational asthma

5. LAA – What is it?
• Animal proteins attach to airborne particles
(e.g. bedding)
– 23 proteins for rat hair and dander
– 8 proteins for rat urine
• Airborne allergenic particles vary in size
from <1 to 20 uM
– Majority less than 10 uM

6. LAA – What is it?
• Smaller particles remain airborne for long
periods of time - migrate from their source
• Inhaled and penetrate deep into the
respiratory system.

7. LAA – What is it?
• Proteins can cause a reaction via skin
contact
• Eye and nose by hand contact

8. LAA – What is it?
• Allergy symptoms
• Increasing intensity
• Quick onset
• Improves away from work

9. LAA – Who gets it?
• Rate of 10 – 40% animal workers develop
LAA symptoms
• Eyes, nose and throat symptoms generally
develop before respiratory symptoms
• Healthy worker effect

10. LAA – who gets it?
• Animal technicians
– Cage cleaning, regular handling, bedding

11. Intensity of exposure
Relative exposure Task
Low Procedures post mortem or with tissues
Procedures on unconscious animals
Procedures involving few animals
Automated cage cleaning
Medium Cleaning within animal unit
Indirect contact in animal unit
Feeding animals
High Injections and other invasive procedures
Shaving fur
Handling animals
Box changing
Disposal of soiled litter
Changing filters of local exhaust or room ventilation
Washing cages

12. LAA – Who gets it?
• Researchers
• Students
• Others in facility:
– Larger particles on clothing
– Small particles airborne
– Taking proteins home - children

13. LAA – How do you stop it?
• No internationally accepted level of
exposure
• Individual aspects
– Can’t identify who is more susceptible

14. LAA – How do you stop it?
University of Otago, Chemsearch.
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Allergen Levels – 2009 monitoring results
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Mus m1 ng/m3
Room Number

15. LAA – How do you stop it?

16. LAA – How do you stop it?

18. LAA – How do you stop it?
Techniplast caging

19. LAA – How do you stop it?
Techniplast caging

20. LAA – How do you stop it?

21. LAA – how do you stop it?
Monitoring
type
2010 Results 2014 results Activity
personal - Nil detected Cage changing 2 hours with
change station in use
static - Nil detected Cage changing
personal - 5.1 Mus m1
ng/m3
1.8 Rat n 1 ng/m3
Cage cleaning
static - Nil detected Cage changing with change
station in use
static - Nil detected No cage changing
static - Nil detected No cage changing
static - Nil detected No cage changing
static 3.33 Nil detected No cage changing
static 2.3 5.9 Mus m1
ng/m3
Cage cleaning
Static - Nil detected Cage changing 1 hour
Personal - Nil detected Cage cleaning
Personal 2.3 8.0 Rat n 1 ng/m3 Cage changing

22. LAA – How do you stop it?
• Ventilation
• New cages
• Change stations
• Building design

23. LAA – How do you stop it?
Procedural controls
– Facility situated away from non-animal
workers
– Animal work segregated from non-animal
work
– Categorize “clean” and “dirty” work
– Standard Operating Procedures

24. LAA – How do you stop it?
Procedural controls: animals
–Male animals secrete more allergens in
urine compared to females and juveniles
– Selection of appropriate bedding
material to reduce impact aerosols from
litter

25. LAA – How do you stop it?
• Business case
• Creating buy-in
• Tender process
• Consultation
• Selection
• Purchase and installation

26. LAA – What did you start?
• Refurbishment of buildings
• Committees
• Costs
• Manual handling
• Changes to processes

27. LAA – What did you start?
• Ownership
• Improved workplace
• Animal welfare and research environment
• Smell reduction
• Cage improvements