The Veterinary Public Health Inspectorate in Rijswijk, The Netherlands, and the National Institute of Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) in Bilthoven, The Netherlands, are planning to create a computer model, COMPASS, to make data on immunization experiments in laboratory animals generally available.
This computer model may serve as a tool to adequately select an adjuvant for immunization procedures in laboratory animals. Immunization experiments are routinely performed with Freund's complete adjuvant (FCA) because of its ability to induce immune responses. However, besides the intended stimulation of the immune response, FCA induces undesirable side effects. A general alternative to replace FCA, combining effective immune responses to different kinds of antigens with minimal side effects, is not available.
To feed the computer model, the creators need information such as what types of antigen are being used, the type of immune response required, the route of injection, and the animal species used. They have designed a questionnaire (downloadable or interactive), and they are kindly asking everyone working in this field to fill in this questionnaire.
The location of the questionnaire is: http://www.cc.ruu.nl/ewi-enare/compass/
This article appeared in the Animal Welfare Information Center Bulletin, Volume 9, Number 1/2, Fall 1998
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