Comparative Pathology Lab

The Comparative Pathology Laboratory is an integral part of the veterinary and animal care programs of the Division of Comparative Medicine. The CPL has four primary functions: (1) to provide diagnostic laboratory services in support of the veterinary care, quarantine and surveillance programs of the Division; (2) to make the services of the laboratory available to investigators on a fee for service basis; (3) to participate in the research activities of the Division relative to animal care and disease control; and (4) to participate in the formal and informal teaching programs conducted within the Division.

The CPL is equipped and staffed to provide technical services in microbiology, mycology, mycoplasmology, chlamydiology, virology, serology, hematology, parasitology, clinical chemistry, urinalysis, histology and pathology. The CPL uses the services of reference laboratories for performance of tests not conducted in the laboratory and for consultation and confirmation of test results when necessary.

The laboratory services are utilized by the Division's veterinary staff in support of programs in clinical and preventive medicine, conditioning, quarantine and health surveillance of vendor and resident animal colonies.

CPL will not accept requests for diagnostic services directly from an investigator. Investigators should contact the veterinary staff to arrange for CPL services for evaluating health problems in their animals. The clinical veterinarian in consultation with the investigator will determine the scope of the problem, initiate whatever corrective measures are required and submit the appropriate samples to the laboratory for evaluation. This mandatory procedure ensures the veterinary staff is cognizant of animal health problems and precludes the inadvertent spread of infectious disease to other animals in the facilities.

Laboratory Resource Support to the MIT Research Community
The resources of the CPL are available to MIT investigators on a fee for service basis in support of their own research projects. In addition, DCM welcomes the opportunity for collaborative efforts.

Intradivisional Research
The capabilities of the CPL are used to support research conducted within the DCM to study and further define animal related diseases and environmental conditions that could potentially affect animal health or alter or influence experimental results. The focus of these efforts is infectious gastroenterology and a separate research staff supports these efforts.

Participation in Division Educational Programs
The personnel of the CPL contribute their expertise and technical skills to the various teaching programs offered by the Division to undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral students. They also provide one on one tutorial training to students or technicians who wish to develop skills they can transfer to their own laboratories. A library of kodachromes and histologic slides, generated from DCM’s diagnostic and research studies of past years, is available for teaching purposes.

Laboratory Forms/Reports
The clinical veterinarians fill out either the Request for Laboratory Service form or the Request for Pathology Service form and require specific information that only the investigator can provide. One form is designed to accommodate all requests for clinical laboratory services, and the other is designed to accommodate requests for pathology services. Each of these forms requires specific information necessary for contacting the investigator and tracking the animal(s) in question. This information ensures laboratory reports are properly directed to the investigator and provides necessary animal related information for interpretation of laboratory data and for tracking animals back to their source in the event of infectious or other disease problems. Laboratory reports are sent directly to the clinical veterinarian responsible for a case as soon as the work is completed. The clinician will evaluate the data, contact the investigator and discuss with the investigator the best course of action to resolve the problem. The clinician forwards copies of the clinical or pathologic findings to the investigator.