The ethics of research involving animals - Nuffield Council on ...
The ethics of research involving animals - Nuffield Council on ...
The ethics of research involving animals - Nuffield Council on ...
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T h e e t h i c s o f r e s e a r c h i n v o l v i n g a n i m a l s<br />
evidence that duplicati<strong>on</strong> was ‘a significant problem in the UK.’ 37 <str<strong>on</strong>g>The</str<strong>on</strong>g> Working Party has<br />
not been able to study the review, and is hence not in a positi<strong>on</strong> to comment <strong>on</strong> the<br />
Government’s view. 38 We note that the APC welcomed the C<strong>on</strong>cordat in its 2003 Report<br />
Review <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Cost Benefit Assessment in the Use <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Animal Research 39 but cauti<strong>on</strong>ed that it is<br />
not yet clear how effective it will be in preventing duplicati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> animal studies. In<br />
particular, the APC was c<strong>on</strong>cerned about the voluntary nature <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the C<strong>on</strong>cordat, and<br />
c<strong>on</strong>sidered whether more binding measures, such as legislati<strong>on</strong>, will be needed to achieve<br />
the C<strong>on</strong>cordat’s aims. We endorse the APC’s c<strong>on</strong>clusi<strong>on</strong> that the operati<strong>on</strong> and<br />
effectiveness <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the C<strong>on</strong>cordat should be m<strong>on</strong>itored carefully and reports placed in the<br />
public domain. <str<strong>on</strong>g>The</str<strong>on</strong>g> C<strong>on</strong>cordat will be reviewed again in 2006. Depending <strong>on</strong> the outcome<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the review, Ministers should explore whether it would be useful to request the APC to<br />
undertake a systematic study addressing in more detail specific issues raised by the possible<br />
duplicati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>research</str<strong>on</strong>g>. Such a study could complement and develop further the review <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
the C<strong>on</strong>cordat, for example by assessing the extent <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the problem and, where appropriate,<br />
identifying strategies for the avoidance <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> duplicati<strong>on</strong> nati<strong>on</strong>ally and internati<strong>on</strong>ally.<br />
C<strong>on</strong>siderati<strong>on</strong> could also be given to the questi<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> whether duplicati<strong>on</strong> occurs because<br />
some kinds <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> data are not made publicly available when experiments fail. It would be<br />
especially undesirable if <str<strong>on</strong>g>research</str<strong>on</strong>g>ers wasted time and effort in duplicating experiments that<br />
have elsewhere been found to be unsuccessful. <str<strong>on</strong>g>The</str<strong>on</strong>g> study could also c<strong>on</strong>sider whether<br />
funding bodies would have a role in sharing or making available informati<strong>on</strong> about past or<br />
current <str<strong>on</strong>g>research</str<strong>on</strong>g>, in order to avoid duplicati<strong>on</strong>. We c<strong>on</strong>sider special issues with regard to<br />
avoiding duplicati<strong>on</strong> in the case <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> GM <str<strong>on</strong>g>animals</str<strong>on</strong>g> in the next secti<strong>on</strong>.<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>The</str<strong>on</strong>g> use <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> GM <str<strong>on</strong>g>animals</str<strong>on</strong>g> in basic <str<strong>on</strong>g>research</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
15.71 Specific problems in assessing welfare may be raised by relatively novel ways <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> producing<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>animals</str<strong>on</strong>g>, such as genetic modificati<strong>on</strong> or cl<strong>on</strong>ing. We take the view that the focus <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> any<br />
c<strong>on</strong>cern, in the case <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> all deliberate attempts to influence the genetic basis <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>animals</str<strong>on</strong>g>,<br />
should be <strong>on</strong> the welfare implicati<strong>on</strong>s in terms <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the likely pain, suffering or distress.<br />
15.72 Welfare implicati<strong>on</strong>s that may be associated with specific ways <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> producing <str<strong>on</strong>g>animals</str<strong>on</strong>g> should<br />
be assessed as far as possible in advance. In some areas <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> basic <str<strong>on</strong>g>research</str<strong>on</strong>g>, such as forward<br />
or reverse genetics, welfare assessments are <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g>ten not straightforward. If such <str<strong>on</strong>g>research</str<strong>on</strong>g> is<br />
deemed desirable, it is important to limit the number <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>animals</str<strong>on</strong>g> produced as far as<br />
possible, for example by ensuring good coordinati<strong>on</strong> within and between different<br />
laboratories and countries. This is especially so in view <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> estimates that over the next two<br />
decades 300,000 new genetic lines <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> mice could be created, and expectati<strong>on</strong>s that the total<br />
number <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> mice that are expected to be used in mutagenesis and phenotyping studies are<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the order <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> several milli<strong>on</strong> each year in the UK al<strong>on</strong>e. We also observed that large<br />
numbers <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>animals</str<strong>on</strong>g> are used to produce and maintain each line <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> GM <str<strong>on</strong>g>animals</str<strong>on</strong>g> (see<br />
paragraphs 5.22 and 7.5).<br />
37 Home Office (2005) Ministerial Resp<strong>on</strong>se <strong>on</strong> the Report by the Animals Procedures Committee – Review <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Cost Benefit<br />
Assessment in the use <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>animals</str<strong>on</strong>g> in <str<strong>on</strong>g>research</str<strong>on</strong>g>, p10, available at:<br />
http://www.home<str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g>fice.gov.uk/docs4/jw280305flint_banner_report_by_the_animal_procedures_committee.pdf. Accessed <strong>on</strong>: 21<br />
April 2005.<br />
38 Parliamentary Under Secretary <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> State Caroline Flint commented in the Government’s resp<strong>on</strong>se <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> 28 March 2005 to the APC’s<br />
Report <strong>on</strong> the cost-benefit assessment that ‘the outcome <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the review’ would be published as an Annex to the Minutes <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the<br />
Inter-Departmental Group <strong>on</strong> the Three Rs, see Home Office (2005) op. cit. However, the Working Party was not able to<br />
c<strong>on</strong>sider this document before finalising this Report.<br />
39 Animal Procedures Committee (2003) Review <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> cost-benefit assessment in the use <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>animals</str<strong>on</strong>g> in <str<strong>on</strong>g>research</str<strong>on</strong>g>, p52, available at:<br />
http://www.apc.gov.uk/reference/costbenefit.pdf. Accessed <strong>on</strong>: 4 April 2005.<br />
280