Riyadh, August 27, 2023, Established in 1987 in the College of Medicine at King Saud University in Riyadh, the Experimental Surgery and Animal Laboratory (ESAL) offers clinical research and training programs for diverse animal studies. In order to establish a strong research culture utilizing domestic and foreign resources, it also offers experimental animals and logistical support to the institution's researchers. Due to its 12-bed surgical simulation room, the largest of its kind in the Middle East, which is furnished with a variety of tools, including surgical robots, microsurgical microscopes, and laparoscopic devices, all used for training to do various procedures, ESAL is one of the most renowned facilities in its field. In addition to rooms for housing animals, ESAL has an experimental operating suite with the supplies and tools required to conduct the majority of scientific research involving animal surgery, an isolation room for animals with a system that maintains proper temperature and humidity levels, and a reverse-isolation room for animals with immune deficiencies that require periodic steroid administration. Additionally, ESAL offers a 10-bed operating room with medical equipment, a sizable workshop space, administrative and technical support staff, and a wide area for hosting workshops. ESAL seeks to assist individuals who are interested in experimental animal research, as well as researchers at KSU Medical City and the Faculty of Medicine, with administrative, scientific, and logistical support. The center's other objectives include providing researchers with the equipment, supplies, and devices they need to conduct effective training sessions and workshops and to disseminate animal science research both inside and outside of ESAL. In an interview with the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the head of ESAL, Dr. Motaz AlAqeel, stressed the importance of the research and experiments conducted by the facility, noting that ESAL members strive to be the best in the field of experimental surgery and animal research, helped by the availability of a suitable environment where researchers can conduct scientific research and receive workshop training.
