Ethics of Using Animals in Research and Education: Importance and Impact

Ethics of Using Animals in Research and Education

Learning objectives Know basic facts of animal research Explain why animal models are used Assess whether the 3Rs are moral Starter: What do you think when someone says animal testing or animal research

What are the principles of the 3Rs? The 3Rs stand for Replace, Reduce, Refine and represent a responsible approach to animal testing. The goal is to replace animal experiments whenever possible. In addition, the aim is to keep the number of animal experiments as low as possible and to only use the necessary number of animals.

Why do we need animals for research & education? Animals serve as good models to help us understand how living tissues function and the biology underlying disease. The interaction of cells, tissues and organs within the body is very complex, and can often only be studied in the whole animal. Only by understanding how disease or injuries affect living organisms can we develop treatments or cures. Animal models are used to: Help researchers understand the fundamental ways in which diseases affect living tissue. Develop and test treatments for illness or injury. Train future scientists and physicians.

Can Results from Animal Studies Really Be Applied to Humans? There are many similarities between animals and man. Examples include: Immune function in mice Cardiovascular function in dogs Animals provide index of safety. Nuremberg Code mandates that animal studies precede and support human studies. Declaration of Helsinki mandates that medical research on humans must be supported by preceding animal research. Nearly all medical advances of the past century started with research in animals.

What have we learned from animal research? Animal research has played a major role in nearly all medical advances for both humans and other animals. These include, but are not limited to: Angiograms, X-Rays, CAT scans, blood pressure measurement, cardiac pacemaker, hypertension medications, insulin for diabetes, MRI, numerous vaccines, cardiac catheters, kidney dialysis, cataract surgery, burn treatments, heart valve replacements, artificial hips . The list goes on and on!! So what animals have helped which medical advances? Let s look at some specific examples

Animal Models for Research & Disease Polio Landsteiner and Popper proved it infectious; able to transmit disease to monkeys. Salk and Sabin developed their vaccine through work with chickens and monkeys. Diabetes Banting and Best showed importance of insulin in dogs.

Are animals used in research & education protected? There are a number of federal and local laws, regulations and institutions, as well as nonprofit organizations, that ensure animals used in research & education are being treated humanely. These include: Animal Welfare Act Public Health Service IACUCs Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees (IACUCs) are centrally important in applying laws about animal research in the United States. AAALAC n 1996, AAALAC changed its name to the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International (AAALAC International)

Animals as Rights Holders Rights conferring characteristics- intelligence, sentience- ability to feel and suffer. What rights then do animals have? Life Life in natural habitat Freedom from pain and suffering.

The Five Freedoms 1. Freedom from thirst, hunger and malnutrition. 2. Freedom from discomfort, pain, injury, or disease. 3. Freedom to express normal behavior. 4. Freedom from fear and distress. 5. Freedom to be free.

Institutional Animal Care & Use Committees (IACUCs) Required at all research institutions by both AWA and PHS policy. Committees consist of veterinarians, scientists, members of the public. Without IACUC approval no research using animals may proceed. Among IACUC considerations are the measures used to control potential pain and avoid distress as well as the potential value of any scientific outcome from the proposed studies.

Association for the Assessment & Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care (AAALAC) In addition to complying with federal & local laws governing animal care, the majority of research institutions seek voluntary accreditation with AAALAC. AAALAC accreditation requires that researchers go well above & beyond the minimum standards for lab animal care & welfare mandated by law.

The 3Rs The 3Rs are principles of good science designed by scientists to improve animal welfare and scientific accuracy. Refinement Finding ways of making animals lives better in labs, this can include toys for animals or better training for technicians Reduction Using as few animals as possible to get good results Replacement Using non-animal alternatives wherever they exist

Opposition to Animal Research Animal welfare is not the same as animal rights. Animal welfare is fully supported by the scientific community, and says we should treat animals with compassion & provide for their humane treatment. Some philosophers argue that animals have the same rights as humans and should not be used even to preserve human life or cure human disease. Groups that believe in this philosophy work actively to end the use of animals in research & education.

Examples of animal rights groups views on animal research People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) advocates abolishing all animal research. Even if animal research resulted in a cure for AIDS, we'd be against it. I wish everyone would get up and go into the labs and get the animals out and burn them down. --Ingrid Newkirk, PETA Director

Alternatives Scientists use many ways to try to replace animals used in research. These include using cell cultures, computer modelling and human studies. Researchers must, by law, use these techniques if they would be as effective as using animals.

Alternatives Researchers also try to use the lowest type of animal possible for their experiment perhaps a fish instead of a sheep or a fruit fly instead of a mouse. Why do you think scientists try to replace animal use? Why use lower animals do you agree with this idea? or