Guidelines on Death as an Endpoint

The following is offered as background on the matter of death as an endpoint.

In order to comply with guidelines governing the use of animals in experimentation, the use of death as an endpoint to experimental manipulation, rather than performing euthanasia to humanely terminate an animal, is strongly discouraged. Investigators must perform euthanasia on all moribund experimental animals unless there is scientific justification that euthanasia would invalidate experimental data collection.

Moribund is defined as “in a dying state”. Animals are considered to be moribund if the following criteria are met:

They manifest one or more of the following clinical signs:

1. Inability to ambulate that prevents the animal's easy access to food and/or water.

2. Inability to maintain itself in an upright position.

3. Prolonged (greater than 48 hours) inappetance and/or clinical dehydration

4. Agonal breathing and cyanosis; chronic diarrhea or constipation.

5. Hematologic or biochemical parameters that indicate organ failure incompatible with life.

6. Unconsciousness with no response to external stimuli such as toe-pinch withdrawal test.

The above symptoms are not a temporary consequence of an experimental treatment (e.g., a surgical manipulation or drug treatment) that has been described and justified in an approved protocol.

If an experimental animal appears to be moribund, the Animal Care Office should be notified promptly so that the attending veterinarian can examine the animal, discuss the animal's condition with the researcher, and determine if euthanasia is warranted.

If killing a moribund animal would invalidate the study, the scientific justification for using death as an endpoint must be provided in writing as part of the animal care protocol and must be approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) prior to initiating this procedure. Investigators who receive approval from the IACUC to use death as an experimental endpoint must also agree to the following:

1. To use the minimum number of animals necessary to achieve statistical significance and to use alternative endpoints other than death whenever possible.

2. Animals must be monitored twice daily (in the early morning and late afternoon including weekends and holidays) and any animals evidencing clinically abnormal behavior must be removed from group housing situations and housed individually with easy access to food and water.

3. Written records of all monitoring sessions, indicating the time of the observations, the person observing the animals, and any observations such as the number of animals evidencing clinically abnormal behavior and the number of animals found dead, must be maintained andmade available to the Animal Care Office or IACUC on request.

Investigators should note that any approved use of death as an experimental endpoint will be noted on all protocol forms and regulatory papers as being in the highest USDA pain level category, “E,” unless analgesics or anesthetics are provided to alleviate pain or distress in the experimental animals.




Research Home Compliance Home Animal Use Biological Safety Feedback Forms Human Subjects Research Policies Responsible Conduct Staff		Guidelines on Death as an Endpoint The following is offered as background on the matter of death as an endpoint. In order to comply with guidelines governing the use of animals in experimentation, the use of death as an endpoint to experimental manipulation, rather than performing euthanasia to humanely terminate an animal, is strongly discouraged. Investigators must perform euthanasia on all moribund experimental animals unless there is scientific justification that euthanasia would invalidate experimental data collection. Moribund is defined as “in a dying state”. Animals are considered to be moribund if the following criteria are met: They manifest one or more of the following clinical signs: 1. Inability to ambulate that prevents the animal's easy access to food and/or water. 2. Inability to maintain itself in an upright position. 3. Prolonged (greater than 48 hours) inappetance and/or clinical dehydration 4. Agonal breathing and cyanosis; chronic diarrhea or constipation. 5. Hematologic or biochemical parameters that indicate organ failure incompatible with life. 6. Unconsciousness with no response to external stimuli such as toe-pinch withdrawal test. The above symptoms are not a temporary consequence of an experimental treatment (e.g., a surgical manipulation or drug treatment) that has been described and justified in an approved protocol. If an experimental animal appears to be moribund, the Animal Care Office should be notified promptly so that the attending veterinarian can examine the animal, discuss the animal's condition with the researcher, and determine if euthanasia is warranted. If killing a moribund animal would invalidate the study, the scientific justification for using death as an endpoint must be provided in writing as part of the animal care protocol and must be approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) prior to initiating this procedure. Investigators who receive approval from the IACUC to use death as an experimental endpoint must also agree to the following: 1. To use the minimum number of animals necessary to achieve statistical significance and to use alternative endpoints other than death whenever possible. 2. Animals must be monitored twice daily (in the early morning and late afternoon including weekends and holidays) and any animals evidencing clinically abnormal behavior must be removed from group housing situations and housed individually with easy access to food and water. 3. Written records of all monitoring sessions, indicating the time of the observations, the person observing the animals, and any observations such as the number of animals evidencing clinically abnormal behavior and the number of animals found dead, must be maintained andmade available to the Animal Care Office or IACUC on request. Investigators should note that any approved use of death as an experimental endpoint will be noted on all protocol forms and regulatory papers as being in the highest USDA pain level category, “E,” unless analgesics or anesthetics are provided to alleviate pain or distress in the experimental animals.


© University of Massachusetts Amherst. Site Policies. This page is maintained by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Engagement.