Animal Testing Research Paper
Tara Hart
Professor Torres
English 155
8 March 2014 Animal Testing Research Paper
Have you ever visited an old cemetery? Have you also read the head stones and said to yourself wow the men women and children sure did die at a young age. I know I have and I am very thankful that I am alive today instead of back in the 1800 and early 1900s. The medical breakthroughs we have made as a society are incredible. It is all due to the fact that we allow and perform testing on animals. With all these discoveries we are living longer and finding more cures to diseases.
In 1959, two men William Russell and Rex Burch wrote a book called The Principals of Human Experimental Technique; they refer to the 3 Rs which stand for reduction, refinement, and replacement …show more content…
of the use of animals for testing. These principals were outlined to try to encourage researchers to reduce the number of animals used in experiments, refine or limit the pain and distress that animals may be exposed to, and replace the use of animals with non-animal alternatives when possible. Despite the attention that Russell and Burch have brought to this matter, the number of animals being used for animals testing has continued to increase, which has raised serious ethical and scientific issues. The 3 Rs do point out important concepts, they do not reflect the substantial developments in our knowledge about the cognitive and emotional capabilities of animals, the individual interest of animals, or an updated understanding of harm associated with animal research (plosone.org). Animal testing is a controversial issue and is questioned by many as to whether or not the test being performed on animals is beneficial and useful to human beings and the animals themselves. Animal testing is necessary and helpful especially in finding cures and advancements in medical research. It is also an advantage in helping our animals that we love or want to preserve, which do have a big impact on our lives. I am curious as to how long would people would people be living and how many ailments would we suffer from if we did not allow or continue with testing animals? I know some people do consent to trying new drugs and treatments to help with their ailing issues, but would we get as far in medical research? Animal testing will always be a debate and there will be the people who agree with the use of animals to further our education in many aspects of our lives. Although others disagree stating that it is not right that we put animals through this kind of treatment or that is a waste of time and useless. PR News Wire states that the research done on the animals leads the way in finding many lifesaving treatments for both humans and animals. Many existing sources have a stake in the topic; every drug licensed for treatment has to be tested on animals, and we have so many cures that have helped people. Cancer is more survivable now than ever because we have been able to carry out experiments on animals. Some animals like the Chimpanzees and mice are very closely related to humans and are good candidates for testing and research. chimpanzees are one of the main animals in which people are against using. The use of animals and tests performed on them make some people think the results are not accurate. They feel animals are so different and that the results rendered are irrelevant. A vast amount of our population are in favor in using animals for testing, they feel that there are no other ways to find medical cures unless we are able to use living organisms for research. In the article Pros and Cons of Animal Testing- Latest Research in Ongoing Debate states that 95% of animals used in experiments are not protected by the federal Animal Welfare Act, it does excludes birds, rats and mice bred for research, and cold- blooded animals like reptiles and most fish( ProCon.org). The animals that are used are for various purposes including education, breeding, and defense research. The practice is regulated to various degrees in different countries. Animal testing has contributed to life saving treatments and cures the Biomedical Research Association has stated that in the last one hundred years every medical breakthrough has resulted from using animals for research. PR News Wire states that the research done on the animals leads the way in finding many lifesaving treatments for both humans and animals. Dogs that have had their pancreas removed led to the discovery of insulin; this discovery has saved the lives of many diabetics. In 1988, there were 350,000 cases of Polio and with the testing of the Polio vaccine in animals; it has dropped to 233 cases in 2012. Animal research has made many advances in treating breast cancer, malaria, multiple sclerosis, brain injury, childhood leukemia, cystic fibrosis, tuberculosis. It was also used in the development of pace makers, cardiac valves and anesthetics. Animal testing also gives way to find a vaccine for Hepatitis C, which is a disease that kills 15,000 people every year in the United States. It gives great hope since Hepatitis B vaccines have been invented thanks to Chimpanzees and the use of them for animal testing (ProCon.org).
I believe that answer to animal testing is yes they should be used under certain circumstances. Did you know that 26 million animals are used every year by humans for research and scientific testing? (ProCon.org). Yes they are harmed or killed, but statistics also show that 95% of these animals are species like guinea pigs, rats, mice, birds and other cold blooded creatures. More facts are that these animals are bred specifically for testing purposes (ProCon.org). I would rather have animals tested than the use of humans as test projects.
“Medical research in the late 1800s and the beginning of the 20th century sparked concerns about the use of humans and animals used in research. There were suspicions around the use of humans when several research projects, including a series of medical experiments on large numbers of prisoners by the Nazi German regime during World War 2 and the Tuskegee syphilis study. These abuses founded the establishment of the Nuremberg Code, Declaration of Helsinki, and the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research (1974). These guidelines provide a platform for the protection of human research subjects, including the principles of respect, beneficence, and justice, as well as special protections for vulnerable populations” (plosone.org).
It is a fact that animal testing has helped the medical world. It is important to allow this practice to continue when it comes to the medical field of medicine because if it is banned the drugs that are tested on animals might have to be tested on humans and this can turn out to be fatal. Did you know that medical research starts from a cell before moving on to small animals like rodents and large mammals if the chemical agent is found to be harmful at any stage, the testing is stopped? (ProCon.org). Animals used for testing are one of the best candidates for studying human ailments. For example, the cardiovascular system for dogs is a lot like that of a man so we can test medicine meant for cardiovascular problems on dogs before trying it on an application in humans. Many medical breakthroughs are made possible by animal research. Without them the advancements would be slower and human suffering and neurologic disorders would be greater. Some examples are stroke victims can have the symptoms reversed from a medication that can be given within the first three hours it will break apart a clot that causes a stroke in the first place. This medication can help save the person’s life and or the side effects can be lessened. Alzheimer’s disease has improved with medication that has been researched on rats first. Parkinson’s disease affects areas of the brain; medical researchers have found these “chemical abnormalities in the human brain were also identified in rats. This discovery has led to many new developments of new drugs for treatment” (thebrainmatters.org). Inherited diseases are usually from neurologic diseases because of abnormalities in genes. Mice that have shown genetic neurologic disease that have also been found in humans. This discovery is a breakthrough that helps us understand the disease for better treatment and a cure. Other problems that people face are improved with animal testing such as, mental retardation, epilepsy, brain and spinal cord issues, trauma, migraine headaches, multiple sclerosis and brain tumors (ProCon.org, 1).
I don’t know of an alternative that can replace animal research; some people who are against animal testing believe computer models can be used as substitutes; I wonder if any human knows enough to duplicate a living entity into a computer model. Animal research is the only way to get the response and reaction of a medication if it were given to human beings. It is essential to get the information like the responses to medication or side effect that medication might show.
Some would say if you are against animal testing for the benefit of mankind then you should stop taking medicine of any kind, as we have advanced from the stone age to the modern era progress of human transformation has seen many advancement in animals as well as humans. If one take a trip to an old cemetery a person can see for themselves that the men, women and children buried there, back in the 1800’s and early 1900’s are quite young especially children; this shows the advancement of hygiene like the breakthrough of doctors and medical professionals simply washing their hands and surgical equipment helped to lessen deaths and illnesses. It also shows medical improvements of medicine and vaccines have helped to prolong people’s lives. “It was discovered by Philipp Semmelweis in 1818, he was able to prove that physicians who came from an autopsy directly to the care of postpartum women, without scrubbing their hands and washing instruments, carried infection with them that often caused puerperal fever (septicemia after childbirth) and death to the new mothers”(Delmar).
It seems that when someone hears the word animal testing many different things run through their head and most of it is not good. People may assume that every type of animal is used for testing or that scientist go pick up strays to perform tests on. Many people also believe that they are tortured and mistreated. To put one’s mind at ease there are federal laws to assure animal safety and the law has strict codes for the humane treatment of animals and groups review this area and are established to make sure the law is followed by all research center. “Government inspectors make frequent visits, and even unannounced visits to animal facilities. Also scientist do not tolerate animal abuse, treating animals humanly is not only the right thing to do, it is not good science and mistreatment distorts teat results and defeats their purpose, it also ruins years of pain staking, costly results” (the-aps.org).
“The regulation of animal research in the US and the animal welfare act (AWA) does regulate the use of the animals used in research, teaching, and testing” (aps.org).
“It does make exceptions for animals especially bred for research like rats and mice. The US department of agriculture oversees AWA enforcement through its animal and plant health inspections services” (aps.org). Farm animals, non-primates, dogs, cats, hamsters, rabbits, guinea pigs, that are used for medical research are the major species, are regulated by the USDA. “In order to be eligible for federal funds, a research institution must agree to abide by animal welfare rules that apply to all vertebra species, including rats and mice” (aps.org). “There is a framework that the research must be conducted under the US government principals for the use and care if vertebra animals used in testing, research and training and must comply with the requirements of the well-respected guide for the care and use of laboratory animals. The National Academy of Science Institute for laboratory animal research (ILAR) publishes the guide which gives the animal experts the opportunity to review and update its recommendation for the proper care of these animals”
(aps.org).
To determine if the use of animals “the AWA and the ILAR guide requires that the research proposal passes through an ethical review committee know as an intuitional animal care and use committee known as the” (aps.org). The National Institute of health NIH provides funds for university, medical schools, and independent institutions that use these funds to conduct a lot of medical and biological research in this country. “In order to receive these funds the institutions must agree to follow the public health services (PHS) policy of humane care and use of laboratory animals” (aps.org). The office of laboratory animals (DAW) make sure “the institution has animal care and use program that can provide for the welfare of all its research animals this assurance is a legal requirement for the institution to receive federal funds if it is withdrawn the funds will be stopped”(aps.org).
“The Association for the assessment and accreditation of laboratory animal care (AAACAC) is also a major oversight body and is non-governmental organization that does provide an independent, voluntary accreditation of animal programs for the industry, accident and government testing programs “(aps.org). “In order to earn AAALAC accreditation a research institution must demonstrate its animal care and all its vertebra animals (including rats and mice) meet the standards set forth the ILAR guide. AAALAC accreditation is broadly accepted in both pharmaceutical industries and academic research institution as a mark of excellence in animal care” (aps.org).
My personal experience with animal testing or the use of it is that I do use make-up, lotions, lipstick, shampoo and soap, I am thankful that it has been tested on animals first. I can rest assured that it will not burn or irritate my skin or my families, unless they have very sensitive skin. My grandfather has had open heart surgery and has a pig artery implanted in him that allows is blood to pump properly throughout his body, it was first discovered that this can be used in animals before humans. Also I have horses and one has lived to be very old and has developed Cushing disease she is able to take a human drug that speeds up the production in the pituitary gland, but before it was ever used on humans and showed improvements it was proven effective in other animals first.
People need to try to be more open minded, understand the logic behind animal testing and accept researchers who find it necessary to continue to perform tests on animals. We need to realize all the amazing discoveries and medical advancements that have come about because of this. Lives have been saved and lengthened; diseases and ailments have been cured. Cancer is more survivable than ever, and I’m sure it is appreciated by victims, survivors and families of this horrible disease. Scientists have grown a human ear on the back of a mouse, just think if we could duplicate organs and how that could affect the thousands of people waiting on the lists, for an organ transplant. The possibilities are endless; just look how far we have come in medical discoveries since the 1900s.
Work Cited
PR Newswire, PR Newswire US “Pros and Cons of Animal Testing - Latest Research in Ongoing Debate” Regional Business News 22 Oct. 2013, Web. 12 Feb. 2014
ProCon.org. "Animal Testing ProCon.org." ProCon.org. 12 Mar. 2014. Web. 12 Mar. 2014
The-aps.org, “Regulations of Animal Research in the U.S.” the-aps.org. Web. 13 March 2014
Plosone.org, “Ethical and Scientific Considerations Regarding Animal Testing and Research” Plosone.org. 12 Sept., Web. 8 Apr. 2014
Professor Torres
English 155
8 March 2014 Animal Testing Research Paper
Have you ever visited an old cemetery? Have you also read the head stones and said to yourself wow the men women and children sure did die at a young age. I know I have and I am very thankful that I am alive today instead of back in the 1800 and early 1900s. The medical breakthroughs we have made as a society are incredible. It is all due to the fact that we allow and perform testing on animals. With all these discoveries we are living longer and finding more cures to diseases.
In 1959, two men William Russell and Rex Burch wrote a book called The Principals of Human Experimental Technique; they refer to the 3 Rs which stand for reduction, refinement, and replacement …show more content…
of the use of animals for testing. These principals were outlined to try to encourage researchers to reduce the number of animals used in experiments, refine or limit the pain and distress that animals may be exposed to, and replace the use of animals with non-animal alternatives when possible. Despite the attention that Russell and Burch have brought to this matter, the number of animals being used for animals testing has continued to increase, which has raised serious ethical and scientific issues. The 3 Rs do point out important concepts, they do not reflect the substantial developments in our knowledge about the cognitive and emotional capabilities of animals, the individual interest of animals, or an updated understanding of harm associated with animal research (plosone.org). Animal testing is a controversial issue and is questioned by many as to whether or not the test being performed on animals is beneficial and useful to human beings and the animals themselves. Animal testing is necessary and helpful especially in finding cures and advancements in medical research. It is also an advantage in helping our animals that we love or want to preserve, which do have a big impact on our lives. I am curious as to how long would people would people be living and how many ailments would we suffer from if we did not allow or continue with testing animals? I know some people do consent to trying new drugs and treatments to help with their ailing issues, but would we get as far in medical research? Animal testing will always be a debate and there will be the people who agree with the use of animals to further our education in many aspects of our lives. Although others disagree stating that it is not right that we put animals through this kind of treatment or that is a waste of time and useless. PR News Wire states that the research done on the animals leads the way in finding many lifesaving treatments for both humans and animals. Many existing sources have a stake in the topic; every drug licensed for treatment has to be tested on animals, and we have so many cures that have helped people. Cancer is more survivable now than ever because we have been able to carry out experiments on animals. Some animals like the Chimpanzees and mice are very closely related to humans and are good candidates for testing and research. chimpanzees are one of the main animals in which people are against using. The use of animals and tests performed on them make some people think the results are not accurate. They feel animals are so different and that the results rendered are irrelevant. A vast amount of our population are in favor in using animals for testing, they feel that there are no other ways to find medical cures unless we are able to use living organisms for research. In the article Pros and Cons of Animal Testing- Latest Research in Ongoing Debate states that 95% of animals used in experiments are not protected by the federal Animal Welfare Act, it does excludes birds, rats and mice bred for research, and cold- blooded animals like reptiles and most fish( ProCon.org). The animals that are used are for various purposes including education, breeding, and defense research. The practice is regulated to various degrees in different countries. Animal testing has contributed to life saving treatments and cures the Biomedical Research Association has stated that in the last one hundred years every medical breakthrough has resulted from using animals for research. PR News Wire states that the research done on the animals leads the way in finding many lifesaving treatments for both humans and animals. Dogs that have had their pancreas removed led to the discovery of insulin; this discovery has saved the lives of many diabetics. In 1988, there were 350,000 cases of Polio and with the testing of the Polio vaccine in animals; it has dropped to 233 cases in 2012. Animal research has made many advances in treating breast cancer, malaria, multiple sclerosis, brain injury, childhood leukemia, cystic fibrosis, tuberculosis. It was also used in the development of pace makers, cardiac valves and anesthetics. Animal testing also gives way to find a vaccine for Hepatitis C, which is a disease that kills 15,000 people every year in the United States. It gives great hope since Hepatitis B vaccines have been invented thanks to Chimpanzees and the use of them for animal testing (ProCon.org).
I believe that answer to animal testing is yes they should be used under certain circumstances. Did you know that 26 million animals are used every year by humans for research and scientific testing? (ProCon.org). Yes they are harmed or killed, but statistics also show that 95% of these animals are species like guinea pigs, rats, mice, birds and other cold blooded creatures. More facts are that these animals are bred specifically for testing purposes (ProCon.org). I would rather have animals tested than the use of humans as test projects.
“Medical research in the late 1800s and the beginning of the 20th century sparked concerns about the use of humans and animals used in research. There were suspicions around the use of humans when several research projects, including a series of medical experiments on large numbers of prisoners by the Nazi German regime during World War 2 and the Tuskegee syphilis study. These abuses founded the establishment of the Nuremberg Code, Declaration of Helsinki, and the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research (1974). These guidelines provide a platform for the protection of human research subjects, including the principles of respect, beneficence, and justice, as well as special protections for vulnerable populations” (plosone.org).
It is a fact that animal testing has helped the medical world. It is important to allow this practice to continue when it comes to the medical field of medicine because if it is banned the drugs that are tested on animals might have to be tested on humans and this can turn out to be fatal. Did you know that medical research starts from a cell before moving on to small animals like rodents and large mammals if the chemical agent is found to be harmful at any stage, the testing is stopped? (ProCon.org). Animals used for testing are one of the best candidates for studying human ailments. For example, the cardiovascular system for dogs is a lot like that of a man so we can test medicine meant for cardiovascular problems on dogs before trying it on an application in humans. Many medical breakthroughs are made possible by animal research. Without them the advancements would be slower and human suffering and neurologic disorders would be greater. Some examples are stroke victims can have the symptoms reversed from a medication that can be given within the first three hours it will break apart a clot that causes a stroke in the first place. This medication can help save the person’s life and or the side effects can be lessened. Alzheimer’s disease has improved with medication that has been researched on rats first. Parkinson’s disease affects areas of the brain; medical researchers have found these “chemical abnormalities in the human brain were also identified in rats. This discovery has led to many new developments of new drugs for treatment” (thebrainmatters.org). Inherited diseases are usually from neurologic diseases because of abnormalities in genes. Mice that have shown genetic neurologic disease that have also been found in humans. This discovery is a breakthrough that helps us understand the disease for better treatment and a cure. Other problems that people face are improved with animal testing such as, mental retardation, epilepsy, brain and spinal cord issues, trauma, migraine headaches, multiple sclerosis and brain tumors (ProCon.org, 1).
I don’t know of an alternative that can replace animal research; some people who are against animal testing believe computer models can be used as substitutes; I wonder if any human knows enough to duplicate a living entity into a computer model. Animal research is the only way to get the response and reaction of a medication if it were given to human beings. It is essential to get the information like the responses to medication or side effect that medication might show.
Some would say if you are against animal testing for the benefit of mankind then you should stop taking medicine of any kind, as we have advanced from the stone age to the modern era progress of human transformation has seen many advancement in animals as well as humans. If one take a trip to an old cemetery a person can see for themselves that the men, women and children buried there, back in the 1800’s and early 1900’s are quite young especially children; this shows the advancement of hygiene like the breakthrough of doctors and medical professionals simply washing their hands and surgical equipment helped to lessen deaths and illnesses. It also shows medical improvements of medicine and vaccines have helped to prolong people’s lives. “It was discovered by Philipp Semmelweis in 1818, he was able to prove that physicians who came from an autopsy directly to the care of postpartum women, without scrubbing their hands and washing instruments, carried infection with them that often caused puerperal fever (septicemia after childbirth) and death to the new mothers”(Delmar).
It seems that when someone hears the word animal testing many different things run through their head and most of it is not good. People may assume that every type of animal is used for testing or that scientist go pick up strays to perform tests on. Many people also believe that they are tortured and mistreated. To put one’s mind at ease there are federal laws to assure animal safety and the law has strict codes for the humane treatment of animals and groups review this area and are established to make sure the law is followed by all research center. “Government inspectors make frequent visits, and even unannounced visits to animal facilities. Also scientist do not tolerate animal abuse, treating animals humanly is not only the right thing to do, it is not good science and mistreatment distorts teat results and defeats their purpose, it also ruins years of pain staking, costly results” (the-aps.org).
“The regulation of animal research in the US and the animal welfare act (AWA) does regulate the use of the animals used in research, teaching, and testing” (aps.org).
“It does make exceptions for animals especially bred for research like rats and mice. The US department of agriculture oversees AWA enforcement through its animal and plant health inspections services” (aps.org). Farm animals, non-primates, dogs, cats, hamsters, rabbits, guinea pigs, that are used for medical research are the major species, are regulated by the USDA. “In order to be eligible for federal funds, a research institution must agree to abide by animal welfare rules that apply to all vertebra species, including rats and mice” (aps.org). “There is a framework that the research must be conducted under the US government principals for the use and care if vertebra animals used in testing, research and training and must comply with the requirements of the well-respected guide for the care and use of laboratory animals. The National Academy of Science Institute for laboratory animal research (ILAR) publishes the guide which gives the animal experts the opportunity to review and update its recommendation for the proper care of these animals”
(aps.org).
To determine if the use of animals “the AWA and the ILAR guide requires that the research proposal passes through an ethical review committee know as an intuitional animal care and use committee known as the” (aps.org). The National Institute of health NIH provides funds for university, medical schools, and independent institutions that use these funds to conduct a lot of medical and biological research in this country. “In order to receive these funds the institutions must agree to follow the public health services (PHS) policy of humane care and use of laboratory animals” (aps.org). The office of laboratory animals (DAW) make sure “the institution has animal care and use program that can provide for the welfare of all its research animals this assurance is a legal requirement for the institution to receive federal funds if it is withdrawn the funds will be stopped”(aps.org).
“The Association for the assessment and accreditation of laboratory animal care (AAACAC) is also a major oversight body and is non-governmental organization that does provide an independent, voluntary accreditation of animal programs for the industry, accident and government testing programs “(aps.org). “In order to earn AAALAC accreditation a research institution must demonstrate its animal care and all its vertebra animals (including rats and mice) meet the standards set forth the ILAR guide. AAALAC accreditation is broadly accepted in both pharmaceutical industries and academic research institution as a mark of excellence in animal care” (aps.org).
My personal experience with animal testing or the use of it is that I do use make-up, lotions, lipstick, shampoo and soap, I am thankful that it has been tested on animals first. I can rest assured that it will not burn or irritate my skin or my families, unless they have very sensitive skin. My grandfather has had open heart surgery and has a pig artery implanted in him that allows is blood to pump properly throughout his body, it was first discovered that this can be used in animals before humans. Also I have horses and one has lived to be very old and has developed Cushing disease she is able to take a human drug that speeds up the production in the pituitary gland, but before it was ever used on humans and showed improvements it was proven effective in other animals first.
People need to try to be more open minded, understand the logic behind animal testing and accept researchers who find it necessary to continue to perform tests on animals. We need to realize all the amazing discoveries and medical advancements that have come about because of this. Lives have been saved and lengthened; diseases and ailments have been cured. Cancer is more survivable than ever, and I’m sure it is appreciated by victims, survivors and families of this horrible disease. Scientists have grown a human ear on the back of a mouse, just think if we could duplicate organs and how that could affect the thousands of people waiting on the lists, for an organ transplant. The possibilities are endless; just look how far we have come in medical discoveries since the 1900s.
Work Cited
PR Newswire, PR Newswire US “Pros and Cons of Animal Testing - Latest Research in Ongoing Debate” Regional Business News 22 Oct. 2013, Web. 12 Feb. 2014
ProCon.org. "Animal Testing ProCon.org." ProCon.org. 12 Mar. 2014. Web. 12 Mar. 2014
The-aps.org, “Regulations of Animal Research in the U.S.” the-aps.org. Web. 13 March 2014
Plosone.org, “Ethical and Scientific Considerations Regarding Animal Testing and Research” Plosone.org. 12 Sept., Web. 8 Apr. 2014