IACUC Application

​​​​​​​​NTU-IACUC convenes once a month for the review of (i) new AUP applications and (ii) major amendments to approved protocols. NTU-IACUC meetings are held on the first Friday of a month though schedules may change. If there is a change in meeting date or time, the IACUC Secretariat will contact you to inform you of the change if you are scheduled for presentation.

All applications and amendments are to be submitted by the 1st working day of a month to be reviewed at the following month’s IACUC meeting. All reviews are on a first come, first served basis.

​The IACUC meeting schedule from Jul - Dec 2024 is as follows:

• In addition to adherence to above mentioned deadlines, PIs are to ensure that risk assessments and all supporting documents are provided to the IACUC Secretariat by the deadline of 1st working day of a month. Failure to do so could result in delays to project review.
• All PIs are required to be present at the IACUC review in person. Any application where the PI is unable to be present in person will not be reviewed at that meeting, even if it was pre-scheduled. 
• All PIs are provided with a 20 minutes presentation time slot per submission. Please ensure that you adhere to this time frame; a general rule is 15 minutes for presentation and 5 minutes for Q&A.
• While time slots are pre-scheduled, please note that there might be some changes in presentation time, in the event slots overrun.
• All PIs are requested to be present at the venue at least 15 minutes before the commencement of the presentation slot. If a PI is absent at the start of his pre-scheduled slot, the IACUC deserves the right to proceed to the next scheduled presentation or end the meeting. 
• Listed below are the points to be addressed in your application presentation, with greater emphasis to be placed on Animal Use and Numbers and Procedures. If your application is for protocol renewal, please highlight to the committee the differences between the renewal protocol and original approved protocol.

​IACUC approval is required prior to the use of all live vertebrate animals (fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and non-human mammals) and cephalopods in research. Types of protocols requiring IACUC approval include ¹teaching, field trials, environmental studies, research, diagnosis, product testing and the production of biological products.

NTU IACUC takes a serious view of the need to assess Animal Use Protocols (AUP) with the 3 Rs (Replacement, Reduction, Refinement) approach and all PIs are required to demonstrate due consideration of these aspects in their project. Prior to completing the AUP application form, refer to the NTU-IACUC policies on Special Procedures​.

1.1 Ethics Review Management Portal (ERMP)

​All Animal Use Protocol (AUP) applications, amendments and annual reviews are to be created and submitted via ERMP for the submission and review of IACUC-related submissions. Study Administrators can now initiate new forms on behalf of study PIs.

PIs are to log in to ERMP using their NTU accounts and password.​

In the username field, please enter the appropriate domain name followed by your NTU username (e.g. "staff/(NTU username)".

Addition Of Study Administrator To AUPs

A PI's team member can now be added to an AUP as a Study Administrator to initiate AUP applications, amendments and annual reviews. However, such documents can continue to be submitted only by the study PI. To assign a team member as a Study Administrator, PIs are to write to [email protected] with their list of nominees and the corresponding email addresses of these personnel.

The following guides on ERMP are available on our intranet page.

1. Introduction to ERMP and AUP creation
2. Addition of Study Administrator
3. Creation of Amendment Form
4. Creation of Annual Review Form

For queries related to AUPs, please email [email protected].
For queries related to Animal Management modules on ERMP, please contact Animal Research Facilities (ARF).

1.2 Requirements Check prior to AUP Application

RCULA Certification & Training Records

• PIs are to ensure that all personnel listed on their protocol have undergone RCULA training for the animal species to be used in the protocol. Animal users must also be adequately trained and that their experience on specialised procedures remain current.

Risk Assessment

• Risk Assessments (RAs) are to be completed and approved via the OHS website. If the RA is not submitted at the time of AUP application submission, it must be stated by when RA will be provided. RA needs to be submitted prior to protocol approval.
• Risk Assessments are valid for a 3 year period so please ensure valid RAs are available for the duration of the project.
• Approved RAs are to be attached to Section 12 of the AUP form on ARFMS.

Vaccinations

• PIs are to ensure that all personnel added to their project have the appropriate vaccinations prior to commencing work on animals.​ Please refer to the Immunisation Grid on our intranet for the relevant vaccines required for the proposed study.​

Miscellaneous Forms

• Refer to our intranet page for all other forms.

1.3 Transfer-in of externally-approved IACUC protocols

PIs who wish to transfer their externally-approved IACUC protocols into NTU must submit a new AUP application for NTU-IACUC review via ERMP. Supporting documents (e.g. PDF of approved application and protocol, and approval letter) must be attached to the application. Such protocols may qualify for Designated Members Review (DMR).

¹NACLAR Guidelines