A/C malfunction, heat kills lab rats

By: MELISSA WEINMAN

Posted: 8/22/07

A heating and cooling unit in the psychology building failed between Monday night and Tuesday morning, killing 102 rats used in neuroscience research.

Chris King, the director for animal care and use, said the rats, housed in a small animal facility in the psychology building, were among those used in research earlier this year that produced important results.

The extreme heat in the laboratory Monday night was due to a failure in the air conditioning system, said Ralph Johnson, associate vice president of the physical plant. Unlike many household units, which are digital, the one used in the laboratory that housed the rats is run on air compressors. King added that it is one big system - the size of a tractor-trailer - controlling both heating and cooling.

While the exact cause of the failure is unknown, Johnson said he speculates the compressor releasing chilled air got stuck closed while the reheat coil was open, pumping hot air into the room and causing the temperature to rise.

"I'm working with Chris King on how to avoid these types of issues in the future," Johnson said. "No one can recall when there has been an incident like this."

King said while the incident was unfortunate, it was not a major set back for researchers because, "a couple long-term studies were completed recently."

In one study, researchers at the University discovered the rats were capable of "metacognition," thinking of what one does or doesn't know. Before this study, it was believed that only humans and other primates had this ability.

Another University study produced results that may lead to new research on Alzheimer's disease. Researchers found that rats are likely to have episodic memories like humans, therefore making them good for studying memory loss patterns in humans with degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's.

"This is the first time we've lost an animal to environmental conditions," said King. "It was a bad day for a lot of people and certainly for 100 rats."

- Information from The Red & Black archives was used in this report.