RESUMO

Certified laboratory animals in terms of health and genetic conditions are essential for obtaining reproducible and universal experimental results. In laboratory animal facilities, animals are housed under protective sanitary barriers designed to exclude and prevent the entry of infectious and microbial agents, thus ensuring not only an adequate and defined sanitary standard, but also animal welfare. Environment monitoring of an animal facility aims to assess the effiectiveness of adopted procedures for cleaning and disinfecting, air system quality and good management practices. In this work, petri dishes of nutrient agar were used, exposed in different locations in the room, and the results presented as “colony forming units - CFU after the exposure period, were used to validate and certify the processes used in the evaluated area. Environmental monitoring is extremely important in animal facilities as it is part of a comprehensive monitoring program and is useful for alerting professionals about the need to improve procedures and revise Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). All of these elements contribute to produce quality animals that meet the needs of biomedical research and regulatory agencies.