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Scholars discuss whether the Animal Welfare Act achieves its aim of protecting animal research subjects. Biomedical and behavioral researchers use animals as research subjects to improve human health. For example, physicians used cats and dogs to develop the medical technology that would eventually make open heart surgery possible. Today, scientists developing coronavirus vaccines first tested on animals before moving to human subjects. In the United States, the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) is the primary regulatory instrument to protect animal research subjects. The AWA protects warm-blooded animals used in research, commercial sale, public exhibition, or commercial transport. The law contains standards for the treatment of animals in research and requires institutional oversight of all animal subjects research. The U.S. Department of Agriculture enforces the AWA through routine inspections of research facilities. Scholars differ on whether the AWA does enough to protect animal welfare. Some organizations oppose using any form of animal research, but others maintain that animal research is necessary for the continued improvement of medical techniques and treatments. This week’s Saturday Seminar focuses on the AWA and protections for the use of animals as test subjects in scientific research.
The Saturday Seminar is a weekly feature that aims to put into written form the kind of content that would be conveyed in a live seminar involving regulatory experts. Each week, The Regulatory Review publishes a brief overview of a selected regulatory topic and then distills recent research and scholarly writing on that topic. Related EssaysWhich kind of animal is regulated by the Animal Welfare regulations?Species covered by the Animal Welfare Act are dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, nonhuman primates, marine mammals, captive wildlife, and domestic livestock species used in nonagricultural research and teaching.
Is research with animals regulated?Research using animal models in the United States is highly regulated and is subject to extensive oversight and regulation by the federal government.
What are the two pieces of legislation that regulate the use of animals in research in the USA?The AWA and the PHS Policy both require that proposals for research involving animals must be reviewed and approved in advance by an Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC). This is composed scientists, at least one veterinarian and someone who is unaffiliated with the institution.
What are the rights of animals in research?Researchers must have respect for animals' worth, regardless of their utility value, and for animals' interests as living, sentient creatures. Researchers must be respectful when choosing their topic and methods, and when disseminating their research.
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