The Comparative Oncology Shared Resource (COSR) is one of Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Scientific shared resources available to investigators to facilitate basic, clinical and translational scientific research. COSR contributes significantly by supporting diverse experimental objectives and in all disciplines of pre-clinical models for the CCSG Research Programs.

COSR is designed to offer the highest standards of care to pre-clinical models, with an expert staff performing all aspects of veterinary medical care, daily health observations, facility and equipment maintenance and surgical and technical services. Medical care is overseen by the attending and the clinical veterinarians who are Diplomates of the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine (ACLAM).

What we do

A close-up of a scientist operating a machine

The COSR offers CCSG investigators a full spectrum of care and use services for their preclinical models including barrier facilities with fully automated environmental controls for the housing of research models. Specialized husbandry with trained staff who perform all manipulations inside Biosafety cabinets for maintenance of a pathogen-free environment for models held in micro isolation (MI) housing systems. In addition to housing pre-clinical models in state-of-the-art facilities, COSR provides Specialized Surgical Services and procedural training, consultation in experimental design, irradiation services, in-house hematological testing, genotyping services, design and conduct of pre-clinical toxicological studies.

Our team is specially positioned to offer these services due to our areas of expertise:

  • Two veterinarians board certified in Laboratory Animal Medicine.
  • One veterinarian board certified in Veterinary Pathology.
  • One MD microsurgical research specialist focused on establishing novel preclinical surgical models creating a bridge between basic science knowledge and clinical applications.
  • 15 AALAS certified care staff providing specialized husbandry for immunodeficient preclinical models.
  • Project management: Consultations, study design, monitoring, drug/radiation treatment, sample collection, processing and histology services.
  • Training: Technical research procedures, principles of rodent surgery and specialized micro-surgical services.
  • Colony management and genotyping services.
  • SCID, NSG colonies and C57BL/6 and BALB/c aging colonies.
  • Large pre-clinical models: Model of hepatitis-virus associated hepatocellular carcinoma and VX2 carcinoma model of head and neck cancer.

Technology & equipment

The COSR at Roswell Park serves as the hub for preclinical research studies by providing CCSG investigators with access to state-of-the-art resources and scientific expertise on the use of pre-clinical models for cancer research studies.

X Ray Machine

Our team utilizes:

  • State-of-the-art facilities with 35 AHR rooms equipped with micro isolation racks with individually ventilated cage systems.
  • Isolation cubicle room and warm cubicle room for hypothermia studies.
  • IDEXX hematology and clinical chemistry analyzers for diagnostics in multiple species.
  • Reverse osmosis, computer-controlled, self-flushing, water distribution system.
  • An irradiation suite with Gamma and X-Ray Irradiators.
  • 75 Bio Safety Cabinets Class II Type II for husbandry and procedures.
  • Bio-bubble clean rooms for specialized procedures.
  • Two fully equipped large pre-clinical model OR suites.
  • State of the art necropsy suite with CO2 systems and downdraft dissection tables.
  • Bulk autoclaves to process ~10,000 cages/week
Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center

Location and hours

Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
Comparative Oncology Shared Resource
Medical Research Complex (MRC) Building Room 260
Elm and Carlton Streets
Buffalo, NY

Operating schedule

Monday – Friday, 7:30 a.m. – 4 p.m.

The Comparative Oncology Shared Resource (COSR) is funded by Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG) awarded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI P30CA16056).

Manuscripts that are submitted for publication in journals that have data generated from the use of the COSR facilities and/or technical services, should include a sample language such as:

This work was supported by the Comparative Oncology Shared Resources (COSR) facilities and Veterinary Services at Roswell Park that are supported by NCI P30CA16056. (Johnson, CS).

The Comparative Oncology Shared Resource (COSR) is one of Roswell Park’s Scientific shared resources available to our investigators to facilitate basic, clinical, and translational scientific research. The facilities and veterinary program are accredited by AAALAC International offering the highest standards of care to the pre-clinical models, with an expert technical staff performing all aspects of daily health observations, veterinary medical care, facility and equipment maintenance and surgical and technical services. The COSR is assembled within the Basic Shared Resources group taking advantage of institutional capabilities in fostering scientific interactions and joint initiatives to amplify the impact of the faculty’s work primarily by investigators with peer-reviewed funding among the Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG) research programs.

Services & fees

COSR provides central support service for research model procurement, housing, clinical care and veterinary research support and collaboration. Services provided by COSR impact all CCSG Programs with priority determination based on:

  • 1st Priority- Peer reviewed funded CCSG members
  • 2nd Priority- Non-peer review funded CCSG members
  • 3rd Priority – Non-members and academic collaborators
  • 4th Priority – External users

Information on fees & services

  • Alam A, Levanduski E, Denz P, Villavicencio HS, Bhatta M, Alhorebi L, Zhang Y, Gomez EC, Morreale B, Senchanthisai S, Li J, Turowski SG, Sexton S, Sait SJ, Singh PK, Wang J, Maitra A, Kalinski P, DePinho RA, Wang H, Liao W, Abrams SI, Segal BH, Dey P. Fungal mycobiome drives IL-33 secretion and type 2 immunity in pancreatic cancer. Cancer Cell. 2022 Feb 14;40(2):153-167
  • Shafirstein G, Oakley E, Hamilton S, Habitzruther M, Chamberlain S, Sexton S, Curtin L, Bellnier DA. In Vivo Models for Studying Interstitial Photodynamic Therapy of Locally Advanced Cancer. Methods Mol Biol. 2022;2451:151-162. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2099-1_11. PubMed PMID: 35505016.
  • Baysal BE, Alahmari AA, Rodrick TC, Tabaczynski D, Curtin L, Seshadri M (CSBT), Jones DR, Sexton S (ZY). Succinate dehydrogenase inversely regulates red cell distribution width and healthy lifespan in chronically hypoxic mice. JCI Insight. 2022 JUL 26; . DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.158737. 2022 Jul 26. PubMed PMID: 35881479.
  • Cheruku RR, Turowski SG, Durrani FA, Tabaczynski WA, Cacaccio J, Missert JR, Curtin L, Sexton S (ZY), Alberico R, Hendler CM, Spernyak JA (CSBT), Grossman Z, Pandey RK (CSBT). Tumor-Avid 3-(1'-Hexyloxy)ethyl-3-devinylpyrpyropheophorbide-a (HPPH)-3Gd(III)tetraxetan (DOTA) Conjugate Defines Primary Tumors and Metastases. J. Med. Chem.. 2022 JUL 14; 65(13):9267-9280. DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.2c00547. 2022 Jun 28. PubMed PMID: 35763292.
  • Hylander BL, Repasky EA (CSBT), Sexton S (ZY). Using Mice to Model Human Disease: Understanding the Roles of Baseline Housing-Induced and Experimentally Imposed Stresses in Animal Welfare and Experimental Reproducibility. Animals (Basel). 2022 FEB 03; 12(3). DOI: 10.3390/ani12030371. 2022 Feb 3. PubMed PMID: 35158694; PMCID: PMC8833596.
  • Yang L, Bhattacharya A, Li Y, Sexton S (ZY), Ling X, Li F (DT), Zhang Y. Depleting receptor tyrosine kinases EGFR and HER2 overcomes resistance to EGFR inhibitors in colorectal cancer. J. Exp. Clin. Cancer Res.. 2022 JUN 02; 41(1):184. DOI: 10.1186/s13046-022-02389-z. 2022 Jun 2. PubMed PMID: 35650607; PMCID: PMC9161494.
  • Sergeeva O, Zhang Y, Julian W, Sasikumar A, Awadallah A, Kenyon J, Shi W, Sergeev M, Huang S, Sexton S (ZY), Iyer R (DT), Xin W, Avril N, Chan ER, Lee Z. Imaging of Tumor-Associated Vascular Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen in Woodchuck Model of Hepatocellular Carcinoma. Gastro Hep Adv. 2022 JAN 01; 1(4):631-639. DOI: 10.1016/j.gastha.2022.04.014. 2022 Apr 28. PubMed PMID: 35844243; PMCID: PMC9280909.
  • Shafirstein G (CSBT), Oakley E, Hamilton S, Habitzruther M, Chamberlain S, Sexton S (ZY), Curtin L, Bellnier DA. In Vivo Models for Studying Interstitial Photodynamic Therapy of Locally Advanced Cancer. Methods Mol. Biol.. 2022 JAN 01; 2451:151-162. DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2099-1_11. PubMed PMID: 35505016.
  • Sonkawade SD, Pokharel S (CSBT), Karthikeyan B, Kim M (CSBT), Xu S, Kc K, Sexton S (ZY), Catalfamo K, Spernyak JA (CSBT), Sharma UC. Small Endogenous Peptide Mitigates Myocardial Remodeling in a Mouse Model of Cardio selective Galectin-3 Overexpression. Circ Heart Fail. 2021 SEP 01; 14(9):e008510. DOI: 10.1161/CIRCHEARTFAILURE.121.008510. 2021 Aug 20. PubMed PMID: 34415177; PMCID: PMC8458256.

Meet our team

Justin Hartley

COSR Administrator
Email: Justin.Hartley@RoswellPark.org
Phone: 716-845-5732

Raymond Young

COSR Facility Manager
Email: Raymond.Young@RoswellPark.org
Phone: 716-845-3160

Robyn Wilkins

COSR Administrative Assistant
Email: Robyn.Wilkins@RoswellPark.org
Phone: 716-845-1781