The closure of a major lab animal supplier could have big impacts on Australian medical research. 

The Animal Resources Centre (ARC) in Western Australia, a major supplier of lab animals, is reported to have told customers that it will close in 12-18 months time. 

The ARC is the major supplier of rats and mice for Australia's biomedical research. It is a self-funding Statutory Authority of the Government of Western Australia. 

In an email to customers, the ARC says it is winding up on the basis that it is not able to operate in a financially self-sustaining manner, as required by legislation. 

Malcolm France - a veterinarian specialising in the care and management of animals used in research - says it is highly concerning for the future of Australian research. 

“The closure of the Animal Resources Centre (ARC) would have major implications for Australia’s medical research effort,” Dr France says. 

“ARC has been the major breeder of specialised strains of lab mice and rats for over 30 years and they supply animals to medical research programs at most of Australia’s universities and medical research institutes.

“Closure of ARC would not just affect the many medical research programs that depend on these specialised strains of mice and rats, there is also the potential loss of the technical expertise required to breed them.

“Breeding the highly specialised strains of mice and rats required for medical research is very demanding. 

“Of course, animal welfare should be top priority but to ensure that research data are reliable, a huge amount of effort also has to go into other aspects of their breeding, especially the genetics.

“For example, most lab mice are simply white or black, so without careful genetic monitoring, there is no way of knowing what strain you are working with – which of course is utterly crucial to the quality of the science. 

“ARC has always maintained the highest standards in these aspects of their breeding programs and I can’t see how this can be replaced.”