IACUC Literature Searches: Home
Using this Guide
This guide should serve as an overview of the literature search requirements of Miami University's IACUC (Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee) applications, as well as a tutorial on best practices for completing them.
For more information on Miami's Animal Care and Use Program, please see their website.
Some guidance and suggestions may apply to IACUC applications at other institutions, but please check the specific requirements of your institution as they do vary.
- IACUC Literature Searches | Quick Guide | .docxThis is a very abbreviated version of the online guide. Covers the requirements and some search tips. Ideal for printing out.
- IACUC Literature Searches | Quick Guide | .pdfThis is a very abbreviated version of the online guide. Covers the requirements and some search tips. Ideal for printing out.
Reasons to Conduct a Literature Search
The literature search should not be treated as "just another bureaucratic requirement". It should not be the last thing to do on your application checklist. A good literature search is one that is conducted throughout the planning stages of your research. It should inform your research design.
It's the law
Federal law requires all researchers working with covered species (basically, all vertebrates, whether in the lab or in the field) to perform and document appropriate literature searches. Specifically, the Animal Welfare Act charges the principal investigator with considering "alternatives to any procedure likely to produce pain to or distress in an experimental animal" and providing a written narrative describing the methods and sources used to determine whether alternatives were available. It also charges PIs with providing "written assurance that the activities do not unnecessarily duplicate previous experiments".
It's good science
Through literature searches, you can maybe find that there's another laboratory that has already researched what you're interested in, thereby saving you the time and expense of repeating it. You can also potentially find that the procedure you were planning on using is outdated or inefficient, and find a better procedure to use.
Meeting the Requirements
Miami's IACUC application is set up to help you meet the federal requirements as easily as possible. Depending on what kind of protocol you're proposing or renewing, you may need to conduct one or two different literature searches, each focused on a different angle:
Research Protocols
A search to ensure non-duplication is required
A search for alternatives is required
Teaching Protocols
A search to ensure non-duplication is not required
A search for alternatives is required
Breeding Protocols
No literature searches are required
However, you must meet other regulatory criteria, which are outside the scope of this guide
Databases to Search
Each search (non-duplication and alternatives) is required to be completed in at least two different databases. If you're conducting a search for alternatives, one of those databases has to be AGRICOLA (see the Databases page of this guide for more detailed information).
