BBC Science examines animal suffering

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>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4877410.stm

Science examines animal suffering

Scientists are carrying out a study to see if it

is possible to report actual levels of suffering

experienced by animals during scientific

procedures.

 

The Home Office only issues statistics based on

how severe a procedure is expected to be when it

is licensed.

 

The study aims to see if suffering can be

assessed after the procedure has taken place.

 

A report setting out the preliminary findings of

the investigation is due to be published.

 

The work is a collaboration between the

Laboratory Animal Science Association (Lasa) and

the Animal Procedures Committee (APC).

 

Levels of severity

 

Both the House of Lords select committee on

animals in scientific procedures and the Nuffield

Council for Bioethics have called for greater

information to be provided on animal suffering

during research.

 

At present, the Home Office annual statistics on

animal research detail the number of project

licences that have been granted. In addition,

each licence is categorised as mild, moderate,

substantial, or unclassified (meaning the animal

is under anaesthetic). This is based on the

likely experience of the " average " animal in the

experiment.

 

But critics say this information is not specific

enough, and because each licence is classified

before the experiments have taken place, offers

no detail about the actual suffering of the

animals used.

 

A working party from Lasa and APC, involving

nine research institutions, looked at the

feasibility of collecting and reporting

information about the level of the severity of

animal procedures.

 

" We looked at whether this data was readily

available, if it could be collected easily, put

together and then reported, " said Dr David Smith,

president of Lasa.

 

They surveyed the current practices used in

animal experiments in the nine establishments. An

analysis of the responses found the majority of

those asked already keep a record of the

suffering and severity experienced by individual

animals.

 

The working party then examined ways this data could be usefully organised.

 

" We looked at a range of different systems to

report this information, and concluded that to

cover the full range of animal experiments, we

need to report both the severity of the procedure

and how long the animal spent in the experimental

process, " explained Dr Dominic Wells, a member of

the working party from Imperial College London.

 

" It became very clear to us that in many cases

the severity would not be consistent for the

whole of the experiment but, rather, would vary

over time. "

 

The scientists proposed a " two-grid " system,

looking at the intensity of the adverse effects

together with their duration.

 

" For example, a mouse that has undergone a

vasectomy would experience a brief period of

moderate severity followed by a long period of

very mild severity, " said Dr Wells.

 

'Bureaucratic burden'

 

The report did concede that providing this extra

information could increase the bureaucratic

burden upon scientists involved in animal

research, but suggested there may be ways of

reorganising the current system to offset this.

 

But it also suggested this would increase openness in animal research.

 

Dr Vicky Robinson, chief executive of the

National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement

and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs),

commented:

 

" The potential for increased administrative

burden is a concern and we would like to see this

minimised wherever possible. However, scientists

have a scientific, ethical and social

responsibility to be as open about their work as

possible. "

 

Alistair Currie, Campaigns Director for the

British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection

(Buav) said he welcomed bringing more information

into the public domain, but warned: " This is only

of value if such assessments are conducted

accurately and fairly and both experts and the

public are allowed to scrutinise and test it. "

 

The scientists involved in the study plan to

further refine the proposals and test them on a

wider range of organisations.

Story from BBC NEWS:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/science/nature/4877410.stm

 

Published: 2006/04/04 23:05:24 GMT

 

© BBC MMVI

 

 

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