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The Peaceful Approach Animal Research: Replacing the Lab

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The Peaceful Approach Animal Research: Replacing the Lab CORRESPONDENCE COMMENT advantageous for authors, who often drive public policy on can then list them among their social issues. This has been papers. true for animal issues for Several journals specifically several decades and includes publish negative results. I’m improvements to the US federal aware of the Journal of Negative Animal Welfare Act. Results in Biomedicine, the Crystal Miller-Spiegel American Journal of Negative Results — Anti-Vivisection Society, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Jenkintown, Pennsylvania, USA. and the psychology Journal of [email protected] Articles in Support of the Null Hypothesis. There is a forum in the Journal of Universal Computer Sciences for negative Animal research: results, and PLoS ONE also replacing the lab rat publishes them. Several other such journals have come and Your coverage of animal gone; all, I think, are open access. research (www.nature.com/ Even so, negative findings are animalresearch) focuses on well- still a low priority for publication, worn themes from proponents, so we need to find ways to make but does offer a way forward. publishing them more attractive. British biologist Peter Bob O’Hara Biodiversity Medawar predicted years and Climate Research Centre, ago that the use of animals in Frankfurt, Germany. research would some day be [email protected] completely replaced by more innovative methods (The Hope I dismissed even reasonable peacefully and legally to educate of Progress, Methuen; 1972). ethical questions directed at the public and policy-makers And Colin Blakemore, an ardent Animal research: a me and my work. Eventually, about the ethical and scientific defender of animal research, personal lesson however, I took up a fellowship issues surrounding the use of has repeatedly stated that: at the Kennedy Institute of animals in research. “Everyone hopes that a time Had I been a participant in Ethics at Georgetown University At the American Anti- will come when no animal is your survey on animal-rights in Washington DC, and at the Vivisection Society, we seek used at all.” To translate these activism (Nature 470, 452–453; National Institutes of Health to bring about meaningful, congruous perspectives into 2011), I would have replied that Clinical Center, where I studied long-term change for animals action, we need to develop the animal extremism once had a bioethics on the moral standing in laboratories through the kind of proactive strategies that negative effect on me — but in an of animals. My intellect development and use of high- you call for. unexpected way. and sense of compassionate quality, non-animal-based The results of your poll I worked for many years as responsibility broadened; teaching, testing and research. (Nature 470, 452–453; 2011) a primate researcher studying research ethics became my life’s Founded in 1883, the society indicate that some scientists animal models of abnormal focus. brings a long-term perspective might be ready to take this idea development. Two years after Healthy debate about animal on opposing views and tactics. forward. Others are clearly not the publication of Peter Singer’s research and the ethical and Biomedical research lobby immune to the ethical tensions Animal Liberation (New York scientific issues involved must groups in the United States have in animal research. Sadly, most Review/Random House; 1975), be encouraged, even in the for decades opposed modest feel that the polarized debate my lab was attacked and its face of hostility. We must also improvements to animal welfare on animal research makes rhesus monkeys released. The remember that it is unreasonable laws and convinced researchers it difficult to express more monkeys were all recaptured and and inaccurate to label that there is too much red tape nuanced views, presumably none was seriously injured. I felt everyone who opposes animal surrounding animal work. Yet because they do not want to be intimidated, insulted and furious experiments as ‘extremists’. the use of the most common perceived as giving ammunition at what I saw as anti-science John P. Gluck University of lab animals — rats and mice to the extremists. stupidity. New Mexico, Albuquerque, New — remains unregulated in Medawar’s vision to replace My anger was such that I Mexico, USA. the United States, and there animal experimentation did not give a thought to the e-mail: [email protected] is almost no accountability to is a goal that is worthy of possibility that the perpetrators the public, even regarding how serious effort, for the sake of might have been infected with many of these animals are used. scientific innovation, ethical deadly herpes B virus from the The same lobby groups responsiveness and animal monkeys. I failed to alert the Animal research: the attempt to sully the terms protection. We should not be emergency departments in the peaceful approach ‘animal rights’ and ‘activists’ deterred by either the scientific area about this lethal possibility. by amplifying the illegal and challenges or the actions of a For years, my fury blocked In your articles on animal offensive actions of individuals handful of extremists. the self-reflection that is activism (www.nature.com/ who do not represent any of us Martin Stephens The Humane expected of any scientist who animalresearch), there was no (see, for example, go.nature. Society of the United States, harms vulnerable animals for mention of the many individuals com/bxabrm). The reality Washington DC, USA. presumed human benefit. and organizations who work is that ‘peaceful’ activists [email protected] 24 MARCH 2011 | VOL 471 | NATURE | 449 © 2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.
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