Each year, Turner Scientific awards a grant to those who’s research exemplifies the goals of animal welfare and solid science.
Sensory Sentinel 2024 Grant
For the fourth year, Turner Scientific is again offering a competitive grant opportunity for the award of one Sensory Sentinel device. The Sensory Sentinel, which is capable of monitoring noise, vibration, temperature, humidity, light levels, and human staff activities in animal laboratories.
Turner Scientific is a contract research organization that specializes in animal sensory systems and it leverages that expertise to offer laboratory facility environmental monitoring equipment and consulting services. Our mission is to improve both laboratory animal welfare and study reproducibility by better understanding and monitoring what our laboratory research animals experience on a daily basis.
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
- Animal facility managers, scientists, graduate and post-doctoral students, research veterinarians, and individuals in related fields are invited to apply for The Sensory Sentinel 2024 Grant.
- Applicants must currently be working or enrolled in a public or private academic institution in any country.
- Applications are encouraged from AALAS members, but non-members are also welcome to apply.
APPLICATION
In a maximum of 2 single-spaced pages, each applicant must describe the following:
- Brief summary of current research;
- How the Sensory SentinelTM will be deployed in the applicant’s laboratory environment; and
- Expected benefits of using the Sensory SentinelTM, including a description of current environmental concerns, and how the applicant’s research will likely be improved.
- Let us know, do you plan on publishing or presenting this data?
- Include a current CV and contact information.
- Submit application materials by email to info@turnerscientific.com.
AWARD
- One Sensory SentinelTM device, with capability to monitor environmental noise, vibration temperature, humidity, light, and staff activity.
- Device will be shipped to the recipient’s facility; remote training and installation assistance will be provided.
- Recipient must be willing to allow public announcement of the award by Turner Scientific on its website, in marketing materials, and in a press release.
- Recipient must indicate the use of the Sensory SentinelTM in the methods section of relevant research publications and presentation posters.
- Value of award: approximately $15,000.
Applications must be received by October 4, 2024
The recipient will be announced before November 4, 2024.
2024 Recipient of the Sensory Sentinel Grant
Pamela Reinagel, Ph.D.
Associate Professor in the Department of Neurobiology, University of California, San Diego
Turner Scientific has chosen Pamela Reinagel Ph.D. as the winner of its 2024 Sensory Sentinel(TM) grant to promote animal welfare and improved research. Dr. Reinagel is an Associate Professor in the Department of Neurobiology at the University of California, San Diego.
Throughout her career, Dr. Reinagel has engaged in pioneering research; from neural coding of visual information, to visual behavior in rodents, and most recently on understanding how parallel visual streams and hierarchical pathways interact in the control of visually guided behavior. A common element of Dr. Reinagel’s diverse studies include application of statistical approaches to understand quantitative neural and behavioral data, with a particular interest in innovative ways to improve research rigor. Dr. Reinagel seeks to better understand and control the research animal environment (thereby improving animal welfare) and to improve research rigor, by better understanding the complicated sensory experiences of our research animals. Dr. Reinagel states “We are studying how animal behavior varies over time, and the extent to which it can be explained by measurable signals in the environment. Accounting for environmental effects could improve rigor and reproducibility in behavioral neuroscience research. With the Sensory Sentinel, we will now be able to assess the potential effects of rarely-measured variables like ambient noise, light, and vibration, on a second-by-second basis.”
Turner Scientific is assisting scientists in their attempts to better understand the sensory dynamics of their research animals in both their housing and testing environments using the Sensory Sentinel device. “By monitoring these spaces, the Sensory Sentinel not only benefits the animals’ health and well-being in their studies, but also helps to improve scientific rigor by understanding how such environmental variables can serve as uncontrolled variables/confounds in research”, said Jeremy Turner, Ph.D., founder of Turner Scientific.
Turner Scientific is proud to partner with Dr. Reinagel to support her cutting-edge research. Turner Scientific provides devices and consulting services to measure variables in laboratory environments that can impact research animals. The Sensory Sentinel, Turner Scientific’s flagship product, was introduced in October 2020 and represented the culmination of years of technological development led by Dr. Turner. Capable of measuring noise and ultrasonic noise, vibration, temperature, humidity, light, and human staff activity in animal rooms and inside home cages and testing environments, this device allows research scientists and animal facility managers to identify and reduce harmful and excessive levels of these environmental conditions.
Dr. Reinagel will receive a Sensory Sentinel device and adequate consultation to allow for proper installation, use, and interpretation of data.
Congratulations!
2023 Recipients of the Sensory Sentinel Grant
Dr. Cosima Porteus, Michelle Wodzak, University of Toronto Scarborough, and
Dr. Franklin and Dr. Byrda, University of Missouri
2023 AQUATICS RESEARCH GRANT WINNER
Congratulations to Dr. Cosima Porteus, Michelle Wodzak and the University of Toronto Scarborough for being chosen as the first recipients of Turner Scientific’s 2023 Aquatics Research Grant winners!
Dr. Porteus and Ms. Wodzak are using Turner Scientific’s Sensory Sentinel to collect empirical data related to the impact of noise and vibration on multiple species of fish, in a variety of common housing systems. Their findings are expected to inform refinements in aquatic housing conditions that will support animal welfare and rigorous, reproducible science for years to come.
We are honored to partner with them in shaping the future of biomedical progress and environmental sustainability for animals and people
2023 RODENT RESEARCH GRANT WINNER
Dr. Franklin and Dr. Byrda, University of Missouri
Dr. Franklin and Dr. Byrda of the University of Missouri, Department of Veterinary Pathology are our recipients of the 2023 Rodent Research Grant.
Their work entails providing empirical data connecting the impact of extrinsic variables (i.e., light, temperature, humidity, noise, vibration, and human activity) with breeding success and the rigor and reproducibility of multiple strains of rodent research models. This work will inform the laboratory animal science and research communities in important ways.
Congratulations for both our 2023 recipients
2022 Recipient of the Sensory Sentinel Grant
Dr. Amber Southwell
Dr. Southwell holds multiple positions in the neuroscience space, including Co-Director at the Central Florida Center for Huntington’s Disease; Assistant Professor at the University of Central Florida, Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences; and Director of the rodent behavior facility at the University of Central Florida Health Sciences campus in Orlando, Florida.
Turner Scientific is proud to award Dr. Amber Southwell with the 2022 Sensory Sentinel grant to promote animal welfare and improved research.
Dr. Southwell has focused her career on developing strategies for the treatment of Huntington’s disease (HD), the most commonly inherited neurodegenerative disease. HD is a devastating condition that results in gradually progressive deterioration of movement, behavior, cognition, and reasoning. There is no cure for HD, and full time care is required at later stages of the disease.
HD research requires the use of sensitive genetic lines of test animals, and Dr. Southwell’s proposal effectively embraced the purpose of the Sensory Sentinel in protecting these animals. “The Sensory Sentinel measures all important variables and tracks employee activities. Therefore, it will be indispensable in helping us to identify and eliminate any potential stressors to promote the welfare of our animals,” stated Dr. Southwell.
Dr. Southwell will receive a Sensory Sentinel device and adequate consultation to allow for proper installation, use, and interpretation of data.
Press release for Dr. Southwell’s award (May 2, 2022)
Support offered to additional grant applicants
We received many strong applications for the 2022 Sensory Sentinel grant from a variety of well-qualified researchers. While it is unfortunate that we cannot offer a device for each candidate, we are happy to be supporting research projects and facility inspections for selected additional applicants. Each will be provided with temporary use of a Sensory Sentinel and technical support for a specific research study or facility inspection. Recipients include:
Dr. Tapiwa Makwavarara
University of Capetown
Capetown, South Africa
Dr. Jeremy D. Bailoo
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
Lubbock, TX
2021 Recipient of the Sensory Sentinel grant
2021: Craig A. Hodges, Ph.D.
Dr. Hodges is Associate Professor in the Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH. He is a leading researcher into the causes and treatments of cystic fibrosis (CF).