SAIL Policies

Project Form: The website provides a project form that investigators fill out to describe what resources they need. CIVM staff will be happy to assist with any questions regarding the form. The crucial information included in the document helps us understand what you need and when you need it. Regulatory (IACUCC) and billing contacts are crucial. Estimates of animal numbers and time frames for the study help us balance the load on our resources. A project cannot start until the form is completely filled out. A code will be issued eg. year.PI_name.project key. An example, 20.JDoe.03 tells us that JDoe started his third project in 2020. Scheduling, data archive and billing are keyed to this code. A project form will be active for one year from the start date. Projects must be updated annually in order to keep a clear idea of the resource use. Submission of the form constitutes acceptance of all policies at CIVM.

Acknowledgement: Papers resulting from work supported by the CIVM must acknowledge the use of the facilities in any publication. The PI must provide the Director a final copy of any manuscript or abstract at least two weeks prior to submission for publication or conference inclusion to assure that the technical details of the imaging studies have been accurately described. SAIL is the fee for service arm of the CIVM so inclusion of faculty/staff on any of the publications will be based on discussions with the PI and Director on the contribution of the faculty or staff member to the work.

Scheduling: Once a project is approved, PI’s can schedule the resources they need via an email request. Each resource has unique constraints. PIs are urged to discuss their needs directly with the scheduler for that resource. Requests should be made as follows:

Bruker 7 T MRI: Stephanie Blocker, Ph.D., stephanie.blocker@duke.edu
Email should be sent at least two weeks prior to the project need. If you need tail vein injections or other veterinary tech support make that clear to Dr. Blocker so she can coordinate with Dr. Qi. Longitudinal studies are particularly challenging so make sure you have: a) defined that need on your project form; b) indicated that need on your email request. Users will be limited to three days in any one week when there are multiple investigators competing for time.

High Performance Cluster: James Cook, jjc29@duke.edu
Use of the cluster requires a two day notice. The cluster plays a crucial role in many different CIVM studies so it is crucial to integrate your needs in such a way that it does not compromise other projects under way. Describe your needs in the email request including the number of nodes you require and the estimated length of the project (hours). Projects requiring more than 24 hrs. of cluster use will be limited to a maximum of 4 nodes.

Data Provenance and Backup: Imaging data (magnitude images) acquired on the Bruker MRI system will be archived to the CIVM Research Archive in DICOM format under the project code. We will work with the PI or her/his designee to establish necessary DHE accounts and test downloads. If assistance is needed e.g. downloading or using open source imaging packages, that support will be provided on an as needed basis at the standard consulting rate ($65/hr.). Images from the microSPECT and Visualsonics systems will be provided to the user on media they supply. These data will NOT be stored on CIVM long term archives. Users are ultimately responsible for review of their data within 30 days of the study to verify there are no problems. Backups of data will be purged from the systems 30 days after acquisition.

Use of SAIL Resources in Grant Applications: Faculty/staff at CIVM will work with all investigators who wish to use the SAIL in grant applications. The Radiology Business Office must approve the budgets for these applications to assure the appropriate fees. The Director must receive a draft of the proposal 30 days prior to the submission to assure technical aims and methods are appropriate.