Tips for Faster Approval

1. Contact us first ([email protected])

You are busy. We work with RIO and read protocols every day. Let us help you:

• Develop new procedures or modify existing ones
• Recommend analgesia, monitoring parameters, and study-related endpoints
• Enter information into RIO

2. Consult a biostatistician. 

Let an expert help you with experimental design and sample size calculations. 

• Check with your department – they may have an in-house statistician 
• CTSI provides biostats consults: https://accelerate.ucsf.edu/research/biostat-consult 
• Helpful link for study design: http://www.sample-size.net/about-this-site/ 
• Use a spreadsheet to present totals for animal numbers justification. A template can be found here: https://iacuc.ucsf.edu/sites/g/files/tkssra751/f/wysiwyg/anesthesia/website_forms/Section%20C%20-%20example%20table%20-%202023.xlsx 

3. Use standard procedures and cores.

Someone may have already done the work of writing up a procedure. All you have to do is check a box.

• IACUC-approved procedures are listed in Section F. Just check off which ones you will use.
• Cores can provide specialized services for your lab (behavior tests, imaging, etc), and procedures are already described on the core’s protocol.
• More information about UCSF cores: rrp.ucsf.edu/find-cores

4. Don’t cut and paste from a grant.

We know you put a lot of effort into writing your grant. The IACUC protocol needs different information.

• Grants are written for other experts in your field, so technical scientific details are important.
• IACUC protocols focus on what specific procedures you are doing with animals, and how the benefits to science outweigh the cost of using animals for these procedures.

5. Use clear, non-scientific language in your protocol.

Our reviewers are smart people who are interested in science and used to reading IACUC protocols, but may not be experts in your specific field.

• Your IACUC reviewers may be faculty scientists, clinicians, veterinarians, or non-scientists.
• Avoid abbreviations and specific technical terms as much as possible. If you absolutely have to use abbreviations or jargon, define them so the reviewer will understand.

6. Have the PI review the protocol before submitting it to the IACUC.

We understand that PI’s are really busy, but this may save you weeks of pre-review time.