Principal Investigator
The Principal Investigator (PI) is ultimately responsible for assuring compliance with applicable University IACUC policies and procedures, the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), the Public Health Service (PHS) Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, the National Institute of Health (NIH), the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, and/or the Guide for the Care and Use of Agricultural Animals in Research and Teaching. Although the PI may delegate tasks to members of his/her research team, s/he retains the ultimate responsibility for the conduct of the study.Who May Serve as a Principal Investigator
All animal research that is conducted by or under the direction of any employee, faculty, staff, student or agent of SFA in connection with his or her responsibilities must be under the direct supervision of a member of the SFA faculty. Since PI responsibilities involve direct interaction and supervision of the research team, the PI must be a current faculty or staff of the University and/or a person who is operating within their University. PIs leaving the institution are responsible for notifying the IACUC well in advance of their departure so that they can arrange to either close the study or name another qualified individual currently at the institution to serve as the PI.
The following individuals may serve as PI:
- Faculty members: All categories of compensated faculty members may serve as PI. Visiting faculty, adjunct faculty, lecturers, and instructors, are not permitted to serve as a PI but may serve as co-investigators.
- Staff: Staff may serve in this role if they have appropriate qualifications to conduct the research.
Given the responsibilities of PIs, at SFA, students may not serve as principal investigators for their own research projects and cannot submit an IACUC application. At its discretion, the IACUC may determine that a faculty member lacks sufficient expertise to carry out any particular research project based on their relevant training and experience.
Co-Investigators and Research Staff
Qualified co-investigators and research staff may perform tasks as delegated by the Principal Investigator (PI) but they do not accept primary responsibility for the research study. Research conducted by non-faculty, academic support staff, post-doctoral fellows, staff appointments, graduate students or undergraduate students must be under the direction of a faculty member, as defined above. In such cases, the faculty member shall be considered the Principal Investigator. The PI may delegate the performance of any or all components of the research to non-faculty if they certify to the IACUC that the individuals are sufficiently trained to perform the functions assigned.Principal Investigator's Responsibilities and Assurances
By submitting an animal utilization protocol (ACUP) to the IACUC for review, the Principal Investigator is certifying the following:
- I assure that all students, staff, and faculty on this project are familiar with the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) and the Public Health Service (PHS) Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, the National Institute of Health (NIH) Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, the Guide for the Care and Use of Agricultural Animals in Research and Teaching, and recognize their responsibility in strictly adhering to approved protocols.
- I assure that all individuals listed on this project are qualified or will be trained to conduct procedures involving animals under this proposal.
- I assure that all procedure will be conducted in accordance with SFA safety procedures, including those pertaining to personal protective equipment.
- I assure that ANY change in the care and use of animals involved in this protocol, including ANY change in the personnel listed on this protocol, that would affect their welfare will be promptly forwarded to the IACUC for review via an amendment application. Such changes will not be implemented until approval is obtained from the IACUC. Animals will not be transferred between investigators without prior approval.
- I assure that I have reviewed the pertinent scientific literature and the sources and/or databases and have found no valid alternative to any procedures described herein which may cause more than momentary or slight pain, distress, or generalized discomfort to animals, whether it is relieved or not.
- I assure that every effort has been made to minimize the number of animals used and reduce the amount of pain, distress, and/or discomfort these animals must experience.
- I assure that the activities described with in this document submitted for IACUC review are consistent with those described in any related grant, contract, or subcontract.
- I assure that the information contained in this application for animal use is accurate to the best of my knowledge.
- I understand that this application and/or my animal use privileges may be revoked by the IACUC if I violate any of the aforementioned assurance statements.
It is implicit upon submission of the protocol that the Principal Investigator has read and agrees to abide by the above obligations.