A
nimal
experimentation
: A
look
into
ethics
,
welfare
and
alternative
methods
R
ev
A
ssoc
M
ed
B
ras
2017; 63(11):923-928
923
EDITORIAL
Animal experimentation: A look into ethics, welfare
and alternative methods
E
xperimentação
animal
:
um
olhar
sobre
ética
,
bem
-
estar
e métodos
alternativos
M
arcos
R
assi
F
ernandes
1
*, A
line
R
ibeiro
P
edroso
2
1
MD. PhD in Health Sciences, Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, Faculty of Medicine, Universidade Federal de Goiás (FMUFG), Goiânia, GO, Brazil
2
MSc Student of the Graduate Program in Health Sciences, FMUFG, Goiânia, GO, Brazil
Study performed by the Graduate Program in Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia, GO, Brazil
*Correspondence:
Address: Av. Azaléias, Qd. 10 Lt. 20
Aparecida de Goiânia, GO – Brazil
Postal code: 74935-187
marcosombro@ig.com.br http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1806-9282.63.11.923I
ntroduction
Since the fifth century BC, there have been reports of
scientific experiments involving animals, but their use
has become more frequent since the nineteenth century.
Animal welfare would then comprise only stress reduction,
animal suffering not being taken into account for many
years.
1
In 1824, the first animal protection society, the
Society for the Preservation of Cruelty to Animals, was
established in England to promote animal comfort, there-
by helping to prevent cases of cruelty.
2
In 1959, Russell and Burch described the principle of
the “3 Rs” – Replace, Reduce, Refine – for research using
animals. This principle recommended substituting con-
scious living vertebrates with phylogenetically more prim-
itive life forms, such as the more degenerate metazoan
microorganisms and endoparasites, or with computerized
simulations. The reduction principle advised that research
and procedures should be carried out with as few animals
as possible, while the refinement principle suggested that
the techniques used should decrease their pain and distress
at all stages of the study.
2,3
In Brazil, Law No. 11,794/08, also known as the Arou-
ca Law, regulates the use of animals in scientific experi-
ments. Chapter IV of the Arouca Law describes the con-
ditions for breeding and using these animals in teaching
and scientific research, such as the use of sedation, anal-
gesia or anesthesia in any experiment that may cause pain
or distress. It also recommends performing euthanasia
whenever the experiment is terminated or at any of its
phases when there is intense suffering of the animal.
4
The Arouca Law created Brazil’s National Council for
the Control of Animal Experimentation (Concea, Portu-
guese acronym for Conselho Nacional de Controle de
Experimentação Animal), assigned to draw up the guide-
lines and enforce compliance with them regarding the
humane use of animals in scientific research. It also set
up the Ethics Commissions on the Use of Animals (CEUAs,
Portuguese acronym for Comissões de Ética no Uso de
Animais) as an indispensable condition for the accredi-
tation of teaching and research institutions that use an-
imals in scientific experiments.
4
The purpose of using animals in teaching is to illus-
trate or carry out procedures that are already known, un-
like their use in research, which is aimed at contributing
to developing new drugs or treatments, in addition to
clarifying certain biological phenomena.
5
Many advances in health sciences were possible thanks
to scientific experiments conducted on animals. Howev-
er, actions from non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
towards protecting and preserving animals are still fre-
quent. Some scientists argue that the predictive value of
this type of research is often low and may lead to biased
or imprecise results, which would result in unnecessary
suffering to the animals and clinically irrelevant data.
6
It can therefore be stated that the practice of animal
experimentation is considered a widespread activity in
the scientific environment. Nevertheless, it has provoked
public reactions, and this practice has been intensely
debated both in society and academic institutions.
5,6
Our study was aimed at undertaking a narrative review
on ethics and welfare in animal experimentation, as well
as discussing alternative methods to its use.
C
hoosing
the
animal model
Meticulous research should be undertaken for project
planning prior to initiating any experiment in order to
avoid unnecessary use of living animals.
3
There are reasons
for their use in several studies, such as those investigating