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SPRING 2023

Research Integrity (RI) introduces a new team member, Daniela Esquenazi. Esquenazi, a fellow owl, joins the Division of Research as a research compliance specialist after earning a bachelor's degree in biology from FAU. She said she is passionate about wildlife conservation and animal wellness. She has worked in various venues during her four years of undergraduate studies including a work-study position in the Sanson Life Sciences and briefly working with Rindy Anderson, Ph.D., and songbirds in Davie. She also worked as a pharmacy technician and in accounts receivables. Born in Mexico City, D.F., she is fluent in Spanish. She has three cats and dips her toes in various hobbies that include music, art, writing and gaming.  She will also join the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) administration team and assist with committee support, protocol review, training processes and general RI operations management, training verification and processes.

The Human Research Protections Program (HRPP) Office is gearing up for its IRB Novelution launch. Beta users and IRB members are testing and providing feedback on the system. The goal is to deliver the best product to the FAU human subjects research community.   IRBNet continues as the current project submission platform. Information on the transition and roll out into Novelution will be communicated as the testing and launch timeline is refined.   Research Integrity will provide substantial training to users on how to use Novelution for IRB submission of documents and managing those submissions. Examples of training include how-to-videos, PDF guides, weekly training workshops and class presentations. Video and audio recordings, and training sessions will be available on the new Novelution website (when launched).  Novelution brings the following new features not currently available in the IRBNet system:   Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) Training Integration All research personnel’s CITI Training records will populate automatically once added to a project. Note: if the email account used in CITI is different from the FAU email address, it will need to be added to CITI in Novelution to activate this feature.   Signature Routing Signature requirements will automatically route to the appropriate signature authority so researchers will not need to identify and contact the Principal Investigator (PI) and/or Department Heads.    Comparison View When making an amendment, researchers will be able to view a side by side comparison of changes made to form fields before submitting. Researchers will also be able to compare previously submitted versions of their project at any time.   Project Status & Workflow Researchers will be able to see where their project is in the IRB workflow. Novelution will show whether the Department Head's signature is missing, if all training has been completed for all research team personnel, when IRB received the project and whether review is pending. Note: IRB will not receive the submission until all the previous steps are completed. If a name is not listed by “Approval by Unit Head,” contact the IRB.

Research Integrity acknowledges FAU’s principal investigators (PIs) for making the transition to BioRAFT. Almost all registrations are now in BioRAFT. For the remaining PIs with paper registrations, these registrations should be moved into BioRAFT as they expire or require amendment. For more information, click here or email Drew Donovan at adonovan@fau.edu.

The following are reminders from the all-hands meeting that was held on March 15. A more detailed summary was shared directly with the FAU animal researchers.   Remember to plan ahead when importing or exporting animals and to check with the Office of Sponsored Programs if a material transfer agreement is needed. Also note, shipping charges have increased and billing for import/export will occur at the end of the process. Comparative Medicine (CM) reminded researchers that there is newly added equipment in surgical suites. Training is required and some equipment use must be scheduled in advance of use. Check with CM personnel for assistance. Biomedical Research Awareness Day is April 20 at the Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute, Jupiter campus, with a keynote speaker and lunch. Register to attend. FAU’s United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) site registration was activated in spring 2022, and in February 2023 the USDA published a new rule that includes oversight of birds. Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) is working with impacted faculty. Research Integrity’s IACUC administrative office has a Quality Assurance/Quality Improvement (QA/QI) program as part of the IACUC’s post approval monitoring program to strengthen animal subjects’ protections at FAU. Protocol procedures, study related drugs and records, project personnel and training are included among areas of review.   IACUC Training Reminders CITI training, Ethical Use of Animals, IACUC Function and the 3Rs (Replacement, Reduction and Refinement) training (virtual), enrollment in Medical Monitoring Program (MMP), hands-on and facilities training for rodent users are required.   Amendments must be submitted to the office (with section G forms), reviewed and approved by the IACUC prior to new personnel working with animals. Each lab is required to document training procedures specific to the lab. General Reminders If you have a new award or Just in Time (JIT) notice, congratulations, but don’t wait to start your IACUC protocols. Contact IACUC administrators for assistance. IACUC oversight includes vertebrate animals and cephalopods IBC registration approval is required for IACUC protocol approval (as applicable) Non-rodent users received emails regarding a training survey and numbers of animals used in 2022 – please respond if you haven’t already.

Check Out the Beacon Online The archived editions of The Beacon can be found online here.  Please share with colleagues or use as references to tips and hints.

If you have any questions, please contact us at researchintegrity@fau.edu or Elisa Gaucher.

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