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PubMed1986

[Laboratory animals and animal experiments].

The historical development of the use of laboratory animals runs broadly parallel with the development of western human medicine. From the latter half of the nineteenth century, after the first anaesthetics were discovered, the number of animals used for experiments showed a particularly marked increase. A number of causes of these developments are discussed. From the latter half of the twentieth century, experimental animals themselves have become a subject of investigation. The discipline of laboratory animal science is then developed. Laboratory animal science increases the reproducibility of experimental studies and contributes to the welfare of laboratory animals. An important recent development was started in teaching laboratory animal science when the Laboratory Animal Order promulgated on May 31, 1985, became operative. In this Order, the training requirements are stated, which have to be met by those taking part in animal experiments (investigators, animal technicians, experts in laboratory animal science). A particular training in laboratory animal science is made compulsory on each of these categories. The Department of Laboratory Animal Science in Utrecht has national terms of reference for university education in this field. The contents of this education is briefly discussed. Finally, a number of problems are reviewed, which are associated with testing the ethical aspects of animal experiments.

Animal Testing Alternatives↗
PubMed2005

Science-based assessment of animal welfare: laboratory animals.

The use of animals in experimental research parallels the development of medicine, which had its roots in ancient Greece. The increasing demand for high-standard animal models, together with a critical view of the way animals are used, has led to the development of a multidisciplinary branch of science we now know as 'laboratory animal science'. The guiding principles are replacement, reduction and refinement (the Three Rs), first proposed by Russell and Burch in 1959. When animals are used, the people involved have an obligation to safeguard their welfare and minimise discomfort; this will also generally be beneficial for both the animal and the experimental outcome. The ability of an animal to cope with the environment and exert control over its life seems to be crucial for animal welfare. In this paper, attention is paid to the assessment of welfare, environmental factors affecting welfare, legislative requirements and future trends such as the production and use of genetically modified animals.

Animal Experimentation↗
PubMed2004

Reduction through education: the insight of a trainer.

One of the articles contained within European Council Directive 86/609/EEC states that "Persons who carry out experiments or take part in them, and persons who take care of animals used for experiments, including duties of a supervisory nature, shall have appropriate training". In effect, this article stipulates that only competent individuals are allowed to work with laboratory animals. At least three groups of individuals can be identified with different responsibilities toward experimental animals: animal technicians, scientists, and veterinarians/animal welfare officers. The responsibilities and duties of the individuals within each of these categories differ. This paper focuses on the training of scientists. The scientist designs, and often also performs, animal experiments. Therefore, scientists must be educated to develop an attitude of respect toward laboratory animals, and must be trained so that, if an experiment must be performed with animals, it is designed according to the highest possible scientific and ethical standards. In The Netherlands, the law stipulates that scientists intending to work with animals must have completed a course in laboratory animal science. This compulsory course started in 1986. The Department of Laboratory Animal Science at Utrecht University is responsible for the national coordination of this course. Participants must have an academic degree (at the level of MSc) in one of the biomedical sciences, such as biology, medicine or veterinary medicine. Although the course is an intensive 3-week, 120-hour long course, which covers both technical and ethical aspects of laboratory animal experimentation, it cannot provide full competence. It is designed to provide sufficient basic training and knowledge to enable students to design animal experiments, and to develop an attitude that will be conducive to the implementation of the Three Rs. However, full competence will always require further training that can only be acquired as a result of practical experience gained while working in the field of laboratory animal research. Evaluations subsequent to the course have revealed that more than 98% of the students regard the course as indispensable for all scientists working in a research area where animal experiments are performed. They agree that the course not only contributes to the quality of experiments and to the welfare of animals, but also to a decrease in the number of animals used in experiments.

Animal Use Alternatives↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Vitamin A status of term and preterm infants delivered at Harare Central Hospital and fed exclusively on breast milk.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the vitamin A status of pregnant mothers, lactating mothers, preterm and term infants who were being fed exclusively on breast milk. DESIGN: Systematic/cross sectional. SETTING: Vitamin A research laboratory, animal science research laboratory, University of Zimbabwe, and Harare Central Hospital. SUBJECTS: 105 pregnant mothers attending the antenatal clinic at Harare Central Hospital for a routine check up were recruited for the study. Two groups of infants: those born at term and those with gestational age < or = 36 weeks. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Serum retinol levels of infants/mothers pairs. Breast milk retinol levels. RESULT: The serum retinol levels for the infants were similar irrespective of age with a mean of 26.15 +/- 9.78 microg/dl. There was no statistically significant difference. The mean serum retinol levels of infants and mothers were significantly different, (p = 0.001). With mother/infant ratio of serum retinol concentration of 1.7:1. Maternal serum retinol levels correlated positively with infant serum retinol levels, r = 0.728. Forty four percent of the preterm and 17% of the term infants had serum retinol levels < 20 microg/dl, indicating deficiency, 2 and only 20% of the infants had retinol levels > 40 microg/dl. CONCLUSION: The majority of infants might be at risk of vitamin A deficiency. Increased intake of vitamin A in pregnant women is necessary, and direct vitamin A supplementation of infants should be considered.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

50 years of the Institute for Laboratory Animal Research (ILAR): 1953-2003.

The history of the Institute for Laboratory Animal Research (ILAR) begins, as does all of laboratory animal science, with the ancient philosophers, anatomists, and physiologists whose work presaged the use of animals in biomedical research and the institutions that arose due to this use. Modern laboratory animal science and medicine began in the late 1940s and early 1950s as five Chicago-area institutions hired veterinarians to manage their animal facilities. Each of these men became instrumental in the founding of the organizations that collectively make up the laboratory animal science and medicine organizations. Nathan Brewer, one of the "Chicago five," was particularly influential in the founding of ILAR. His boss at the University of Chicago, Dr. Paul Weiss, a member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), asked him to help establish a committee with the stated purpose of preparing recommendations to the NAS to develop an office to obtain information on sources of supply for research animals. This office became ILAR, and Brewer was chairman of its first report on the diseases of laboratory animals. He was also a founding diplomat and first president of the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine. This history recognizes the thoughtful and energetic contributions of scientists and veterinarians to ILAR. It provides a 50-year overview of the programs and reports of ILAR and highlights examples where these reports have been adopted by scientists and federal agencies and incorporated into national laws and policies governing the use of animals in research both in the United States and in other countries.

Academies and Institutes↗
PubMed2006

Motivation of animal care technicians through recognition.

Keeping employees motivated is a challenge faced by managers in the field of laboratory animal science and in the business world at large. Using Maslow's 'Hierarchy of Needs' theory as a guide, the authors describe how managers can create a recognition program to keep employees feeling happy and rewarded. They discuss programs used at Bristol-Myers Squibb and share lessons learned from various programs.

Animal Husbandry↗
PubMed2006

The laboratory animal boards study group: A multifaceted tool for preparation for the American College for Laboratory Medicine board examination.

Preparation for the specialty board examination for the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine (ACLAM) is an intensive process that is facilitated by geographic regions where many people studying for the exam are located in close proximity. However, many people work at institutions that are distant from these 'study centers'. Approximately 10 y ago, the Laboratory Animal Boards Study Group (LABSG) online journal club was established to provide a forum for journal review for examination preparation. Over the years, the mission of this group has expanded to include practice examinations and practicals, questions from common resources, and summaries and questions from common laboratory animal science journals. These study aids are beneficial for those preparing for the ACLAM certification examination. They are also beneficial for those preparing for the technician and manager certification examinations offered by the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science (AALAS). This article is intended to be an introduction to the variety of study aids available through the LABSG online journal review club and the LABSG web page (www.labsg.org). It also provides details on the demographics of participants and an exploration of how this resource enhances examination preparation.

Academies and Institutes↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[The experiments with laboratory animals from a bioethical point of view--history, modern time, perspectives].

The origin of laboratory animal science was called forth by violent development of experimental biology and medicine in the XIX century on the one hand, and on the other hand by the necessity to have standard healthy animals for experiments with strictly definite biological characteristics. With this aim in view management technology and animal use in experiments have been constantly improved. "Laboratory animal" notion has been formed by the end of the XIX century. At the beginning of laboratory animal science development ethical problems were not as urgent as they are now. It is established that the three Rs bioethical conception of W.M.S. Russel and R.L. Burch (1959) has influence on modern state and perspectives of the development of animal experimental methods. It is shown that the existence of laboratory animal protection laws and the reflection in them of compulsory ethical review of scientific project and statistics of used laboratory animals is absolutely necessary.

Animal Care Committees↗
PubMed2002

Direct production of gene-targeted mice from ES cells by nuclear transfer and gene transmission to their progeny.

In order to evaluate the usefulness of a cloning technique to produce gene-manipulated mice for the field of laboratory animal science, we produced mice cloned from gene-targeted embryonic stem (ES) cells and examined the vertical transmission of a targeted gene to their progeny. Of 1257 eggs constructed by nuclear transfer using M-phase ES donor cells targeted with an oviduct-specific glycoprotein (OGP) gene, 990 formed a pseudo-pronucleus and a polar body after activation. Of 504 cloned embryos transferred into recipients, 20 live cloned pups (2%) were recovered by Caesarean section at 19.5 days of gestation. Fourteen of these cloned mice were studied. Genotyping of the OGP locus and 20 microsatellite loci showed that they were genetically identical to the OGP gene-targeted TT2 cells. Eight cloned pups grew into adults, of which 7 were male and 1 was female (missing the Y chromosome). Mating experiments using the cloned mice were carried out. Of 89 F1 mice produced from the mating of cloned and C57BL/6J mice, 50 had the targeted OGP gene heterozygously. Thirty-seven F2 mice from 4 pairs of the OGP-/+ mice were composed of 9 OGP-/-, 18 OGP-/+, and 10 OGP+/+. Moreover, 26 offspring of one pair of the cloned mice were composed of 10 OGP-/-, 12 OGP-/+, and 4 OGP+/+. These offspring were fertile and transmitted the mutant OGP gene to the next generation. Comparison of these results with those of germline chimeric mice indicates that gene-targeted mice can be produced at least one generation earlier by nuclear transfer than by the conventional methods. In addition, the targeted OGP gene was constantly transmitted to the progeny of the gene-targeted mice. Cloning techniques are potentially a more efficient way to generate gene-manipulated mice for laboratory animal science, although such techniques include many unresolved problems, such as low production efficiency, and selection of a cell source for gene manipulation among others.

Animals↗
PubMed1981

Requirements for laboratory animals in health programmes.

Laboratory animals are essential for the successful execution of many health programmes. A wide variety of animal models is used in the worldwide efforts to improve the control of various diseases, and in the basic research needed to improve health care. Biomedical programmes require specially-bred animals reared under controlled conditions, with close attention given to such factors as physical environment, nutrition, microbiological status, and genetic background. The need for a regular supply of appropriate animals has led to the development of a field of study known as laboratory animal science, and a speciality within veterinary medicine known as laboratory animal medicine. The importance of laboratory animals is recognized by the World Health Organization, which, in cooperation with other organizations, provides training, technical information, and consultative support in this field.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Microbiological standardization of laboratory animals].

An overview is given on various aspects of microbiological standardisation of laboratory animals. The paper focuses on small rodents because rats and mice are the most frequently used animal species. An introductory chapter describes the importance of micro-organisms and their potential effects on animals and animal experiments. Some terms describing the microbiological quality of rodents (e.g., germ-free, "SPF", conventional) are explained. Housing conditions and requirements for the management which are both necessary to maintain a high microbiological standard in the animal facility are described. The most relevant sources of micro-organisms are briefly discussed. An overview is given on some aspects which have to be considered during health monitoring like, e.g., micro-organisms to be monitored, sample size and frequency, age of animals. In the reference section primarily actual and general articles or recommendations are listed. Further details can be found at internet homepages which are listed for several organisations active in laboratory animal science.

Animals↗
PubMed1976

[The Laboratory Animal Act (author's transl)].

The Laboratory Animal Act which was passed by the Second Chamber of Partiament in the Netherlands on June 1, 1976, is regarded as a Landmark in the care and management of laboratory animals, in previous years achieved on a voluntary basis. In addition to direct regulations for the protection of laboratory animals, the act includes standards to expert knowledge and skill, which have to be complied with by those taking part in experimental studies on animals, such as animal technicians, scientists who use the results of these experiments and specialists in laboratory animal science.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

A primer in epidemiologic methodology.

Epidemiology is defined as the study of the distribution and determinants of disease within populations. In addition to the requirements for disease surveillance, epidemiologic methods have numerous applications in laboratory animal science and can reveal important insights into the multifactoral mechanisms of disease, thereby aiding in the design of optimized intervention strategies. Observational approaches to data collection can be used to quantify the role of causal factors under natural circumstances, complementing the value of experimental studies in this field. The meaning and appropriate use of standard measures of disease frequency and exposure-disease relationships are reviewed, along with explanations of bias and confounding. Recommendations for reporting the methods and findings from this type of work in comparative medicine literature are presented. Aspects of model-based approaches to data analysis are introduced, offering further opportunities for gaining needed information from epidemiologic study of problems in laboratory animal medicine and management.

Animal Diseases↗