Animal Testing Perspectives » edteam

Brussels conference puts spotlight on alternatives to animal testing

edteam — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 10:36:26 +0000

It won’t be long now until the annual European Partnership for Alternative Approaches to Animal Testing (EPAA) conference which takes place on 9 November here in Brussels.

The EPAA is an independent platform which brings together the European Commission and industry groups to collaborate on implementing the 3 Rs Declaration. It has been running since 2005 and has done a lot to bring together people who don’t talk as much as they should – like companies and regulators, or scientists and EU officials.

Last year’s event put the focus on ‘reduction and refinement’ while this time around the spotlight is on Integrated Testing Strategies (ITS) in animal research.

ITS can be tricky to define but is essentially a way to connect animal research methods, non-animal testing techniques and computer-based modelling to advance the cause of our old friends, the 3Rs.

Last month the EPAA ran a workshop on ITS so the annual conference is a natural follow-on from that.

The discussion will look at how ITS can be applied in a way that delivers efficient science-based results while reducing the use of animals, but at the same time meeting the growing demands of authorities and legal risk assessors.

Given Europe’s current obsession with innovation and competitiveness, it will be interesting to see whether ITS can really be the silver bullet that delivers all the information scientists need without compromising on speed, cost, or product safety. Plus, given that we’re in Brussels, one wonders what the EU can do to promote the use of appropriate ITS?

Can public and private stakeholders work together on non-competitive projects that will ultimately benefit all, perhaps along the lines of the Innovation Medicines Initiative?

The conference programme looks busy so hopefully we’ll get some answers on 9 November. We’ll be attending with a video to capture feedback from the day.

Is animal research to cure blindness a good thing?

edteam — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 10:19:14 +0000

This week sees the start of World Retina Week from 19 – 24 September. Campaigns are being launched across the globe to raise awareness of retina-related diseases causing blinding and the need for more research funding.

Through stem cell research, major advances have occurred in recent years. People of all ages are regaining their sight, particularly in developing countries. However this human progress has been achieved through the use of experimentation on animals, like dogs. Yet in a recent post, an Animal Testing Perspectives guest blogger argues that research on animals is also benefiting animals – Should we stop medical research on cats and dogs?

What’s your view?

Q: Should we experiment on animals to help find fight blindness in humans?

We want to hear your opinion.

Brain researcher’s view on research with monkeys

edteam — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 12:57:59 +0000

The cameraman and I were pretty surprised when Professor Peter Janssen greeted us at Leuven university hospital reception. We were expecting someone… well we weren’t expecting Peter. On one hand he’s a relaxed straight-talking family man, on the other he has already published a long list of neurological research alongside some heavy-duty medical qualifications and awards.

Today he works in the Laboratory of Neurophysiology at the Leuven Research Institute for Neurodegenerative Disorders, researching depth perception. He uses macaque monkeys to understand which parts of the brain control the comprehension of depth and ability to carry out those tasks.

Over the coming weeks, I will be publishing short excerpts from this interview, which will cover the life of a research monkey, common misconceptions, ethics etc. But for this post, let’s start with the basic of all questions.

“Why is brain research even necessary?

Neil Parish MP talks through the tough policy choices during the revision of the lab animal legislation

edteam — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 14:13:26 +0000

We recently interviewed Neil Parish MP, the first reading rapporteur for the revision of law protecting lab animals. In our first video, Neil expressed the challenges he faced during this review to find the right balance between helping science advance, while protecting animals as much as possible.

In this second video, Neil goes into detail on what drove his decisions that shaped the final legislation; policy regarded by some as contradictory and by others as too pro-science.

However, Neil is made of sterner stuff and I respect his final comment in the video, “I wasn’t going to be dictated by just the popular view, I was actually going to take a view that I could stand up in [sic] my conscience and live with”.

I’d be interested to hear your views on our chat with Neil, particularly his comments on the 3Rs (Replacement, Reduction, Refinement) policy. He believes the 3Rs focuses science and industry on reducing and find alternatives to using animals in research, do you?

Understanding Directive 2010/63: the new legislation governing the use of lab animals

Finding the right balance between animal welfare & human welfare

Finding cures for modern diseases

edteam — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 17:06:40 +0000

Is there a cut-off point when we stop researching a particular disease? Simon Festing former Director General from Understanding Animal Research, explains the ongoing evolution of medical research and the societal drive for cures to modern diseases.

What’s your view?

Finding cures for modern diseases

edteam — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 16:36:57 +0000

What do you think?