Medical Experiment on Animals - Term Paper Example

Pros and Cons of Animal testing – Is it worth it? Number] Drug trials are necessary before the medicine to be authentically allowed for prescription. However, these drugs need to be tested before they can be used to treat humans. Pharmaceutical manufacturers have been using animals like mice, pigs, cats etc to test medicines. Many diseases have been found common between animals, especially in vertebrates and humans. This is the main reason why experimenting on animals has become so common over the past years. Animal testing dates back to the 2nd century, when a physician named Galen dissected goats and pigs. In the past, animal testing was justified due to lack of technology and absence of proficiency in medicine, as fewer alternatives were present to heal the patients (Anderegg et al, 1). Supporters of animal testing have been using the argument that experimentation on animals have led to remarkable advancements like kidney transplants, mental illness, ulcer and asthma drugs, bypass operations, polio vaccines etc. Even the effects of penicillin were first observed on mice in 1940. Following these tests, the drug was then used on soldiers in 1941. Similarly, blood transfusion was conducted on dogs in 1914. Since then this technique has been used for human beings and has helped save the lives of many (RDS, 3). In spite of what the supporters of animal testing say, it has been testified by numerous medical historians that key medical discoveries were rather made by observing patients and human autopsy, as opposed to animal testing. There have been several cases where testing on animals has led to results which ended up misleading the scientists rather than provide evidence. In 1963, it was concluded that smoking and lung cancer in humans was strongly correlated. This conclusion was a result of retrospective studies and research. However when tested on animals, the experiments failed to produce the desired results. Since the human and animal anatomy had vast difference, researchers ignored the human data which they obtained from patients. As a result, health warnings weren’t issued and this resulted in thousands of deaths by lung cancer (Anderegg et al, 2). Similarly the use of animal models misled researchers, when the polio virus was being studied. As a result of experimenting on monkeys, researchers concluded that the polio virus was transmitted through the respiratory system. Consequently misdirected preventive measures were taken and the development of the polio vaccine was delayed. It was later found out that in human, the polio virus is transmitted by the digestive system (Anderegg et al, 3). Even though more advanced ways of testing medicines are available today, some manufacturers still resort to animal testing. When foreign substances are released into whole body, predicting the effects it will have on the various organs is not only difficult, but next to impossible. Human anatomy is complex, thus, complexity of it makes the matter of medicine intake more perilous. Thus, before releasing a drug in the market, manufacturers of these drugs make sure that it has been tested on animals to avoid risking human life. This is done so that the scientists can observe how the chemical would react on a human body and how the organs would be affected, if high levels of these chemicals are injected. Many scientists thus, believe that animal testing is not only necessary, but it is also ethical, as numerous human lives are being saved (SOT Animals, 3). This paper will study the advantages and disadvantages of medical experimentation on animals. It will study whether it is ethical to experiment on animals or are there other alternatives available. Advantages of Animal Experimentation Testing on animals help determine the safety of medicines. Most of the medicines, which are available in the market today, have been tested on animals. By testing them, researchers ensure that these medicines are safe for consumption. Once a medicine is tested on animals, scientists can then help find out its safe level of usage for humans. Thus, the consumers are provided with the relevant and useful safety labels. Even though medicines have been used to cure humans, overdose of chemicals can lead to serious problems, which can be fatal. By testing on animals, scientists determine the optimum levels of consumption. They also conclude how these chemicals can cause injuries to the body and which steps should be taken in the case of an overdose poisoning. The human body is so complex, that it has been virtually impossible to recreate that complexity in a controlled laboratory environment. Thus, to test how a certain chemical reacts within the human body, animals have been used since years. Many essential medicines like penicillin, Tuber clauses drug, meningitis and breast cancer treatments have all been breakthroughs in the history of medical science. These medicines have been tested on animals before they were used on human. Thus, animal testing has not only led to scientific breakthroughs, but has also helped saved numerous human lives over the years. One such example is the use of steroid therapy in premature babies. Following a discovery that has been made on a premature lamb, research is now being carried out on rabbits and sheep to study the effect of corticosteroids on lung development. It has been concluded through a research that providing steroid therapy reduces respiratory stress in premature babies from 75% to 8%. Since the human baby lungs have the same enzymes as animal lungs, synthetic surfactants have been developed through animal research. These surfactants help premature babies, who are unable to produce it themselves, thereby reducing respiratory stress (RDS, 6). A common view about animal experimentation has been of innocent animals trapped inside laboratories. This however is not the case. At times substances produced by the animals have been vital in the production of medicines for humans. Snake venom is an example. The venom of the Brazilian pit viper has been used to develop anti-hypertension medicines – the angiotensin converting enzyme. These ACE inhibitors prevent the formation of angiotensin in the body, which is primarily responsible for high blood pressure. With the occurrence of hypertension being very high in UK, the ACE inhibitors have reduced death rates by 30-70% (RDS, 7). Animal testing has been equally imperative in the production of vaccines for diseases which were previously fatal. Before 1993, Hemophilus influenzae type B – a cause of meningitis – led to severe brain damage or death in about 800 children in the US each year. Vaccines produced to treat this disease were tested on rabbits and mice. Since then the vaccines have been in routine use. They have been so effective that within two months of their introduction, Hib infection cases were reduced by 70% (Botting & Morrison, 83). Disadvantages of Animal Experimentation In spite of the numerous breakthroughs in medical science which have been achieved by animal testing, there are many who condemn it. As mentioned before, animal bodies are very complex units. Over the years, through the evolutionary process, slight differences have developed in the physical and pathological setup of different species. Each body has numerous organ systems, which interact with each other in complex ways. When animals are used in laboratories, they are injected with foreign substances which induce diseases through genetic manipulation. The effects of drugs on animals are then extrapolated to humans. There has been a certain amount of uncertainty that exists when extrapolating animal results to humans, and it is because of these uncertainties that experimentations on animals are deemed void (Barnard & Kaufman, 80). Numerous medical advancements have been delayed because the drugs were tested on animals and it had varied results. These tests provided misleading results because of which, advancements were put on hold. The case of the polio virus is one such example. In 1920-30, tests were conducted on monkeys in the for polio vaccine. These tests indicated that this virus affected the nervous system. These conclusions were in complete contradiction from the previous test results, which were conducted on humans. Those results showed that the polio virus affected the digestive system in humans. It was later found out that since the polio virus in monkeys was introduced through the nose, it had developed an affinity for the brain. In such cases where the researches on humans and animals have contradicted each other, it has been found that scientists tend to ignore the more accurate human research data and pay more attention to the one which is obtained using animal models (Bernard & Kaufman, 80). The National Cancer Act had predicted that by 1976, a cure for cancer would be found. However, it has been long since, but still no cure has been found for cancer. Billions of dollars are spent annually on cancer research, but no significant results have been seen. The major reason for this is the preoccupations of researchers with animal models. As stated before, there are cellular, genetic and molecular differences between humans and animals. As a result, animals – mice – do not make accurate models for cancer research. According to the researcher Robert Weinberg, animal models for human cancer are a waste of time and money. Drug companies spend huge amounts of money conducting these researches, when the basic differences between these species makes the conclusion of useful results impossible (Anderegg et al, 3). Experiments on animals can not give any certain verification to the theory being tested. These experiments only give rise to new hypotheses, which require further tests. The molecular structure of animals and humans is different to an extent that when human ailments are induced in animals, they differed significantly in their cause and their course. It has also been proven that treatments which were effective in animals weren’t able to treat the same diseases in humans and some even had excessive side effects (Anderegg et al, 5). According to the reviews conducted by MRMC, researchers usually focus on certain aspects of diseases in the animal models. Once induced, diseases in animal models and humans differ considerably. Thus, researchers have been focusing on those aspects of the diseases, which are similar to the ones found in humans. Since the animal bodies are just as complex as human bodies, focusing on one aspect can provide extremely misleading results. In addition to this, in researches the diseases have been artificially induced in animals. Depending upon the point of entry of the virus and the way it is administered, the effects differ. The environment of the laboratory , imprisonment, observations make animals uneasy which eventually ends in stress. This affects the animals’ blood pressure, pulse rate, breathing rate along with other functions. Thus, when observations are made, they are twisted and mistaken. Alternatives to Experimentation on Animals Use of animals in medical experiments and researches has always been a topic of debate. Many people and animal rights activist believe that being living beings; animals should be given respect, freedom and protection. People on the other extreme believe that humans have authority over animals and if these animals are used to find cures which will help increase human life expectancy, and then there are no moral concerns to be raised. However, owing to increased awareness, scientists have been looking for alternative ways of research which do not require the use or destruction of animals. When finding alternative to animal research, the 3R principle have been used. This includes reduction – reducing the number of animals used in experiments, refinement – refining the rest procedures so that the animals used suffer minimal pain and distress, and replacement – where possible replace the animal experiments with non-animal ones. One way of reducing the number of animals used is by sharing the control group of animals by researchers. Numerous difficulties are associated with such a method, still common grounds could be found and thus, sharing made possible. Another possible way of reducing the number of animals used is by sharing individual animals and their tissues. For example, at the University of Virginia, researchers in the Department of Internal Medicine and the Department of Biology have been using the organs of the same rats. Each department require a different organ, but for that purpose numerous rats aren’t killed. Organs from the same rats were distributed between these two departments (US Congress, 114). Usage of animals is an essential part of the experimental design at NASA. But the researchers are required to combine projects so that only a small group of animals is used. In order to reduce the number of animals used in experiments, serial sacrifice, group sequential testing and crossover can be used. Serial sacrifice involves the random selection of induced animals to examine the progress of a disease. In a crossover experiment, the same animal is used as its own control. The animal is first given a placebo and then eventually the reverse medication. For group sequential experiments, two groups of animals are given different drugs and then differences are observed between these two groups. The earlier the difference is spotted, the less number of animals will be used for the research (US Congress, 115). Non mammal vertebrates can be used in experiments as opposed to mammals like dogs, sheep and primates. Previously the use of proper forms of anaesthesia in animal research had been dependent on the discretion of the researcher. Today because of the presence of the authorities, test animals have been recognised as veterinary patients who have the right to protection. Anaesthetics and tranquilizers are now used to reduce pain and distress in animals. In some cases, animals are also provided with post operative care. Before employing animals for experimentation, investigators should search for non-animals techniques of conducting those same experiments. With the advancements in technology, living systems like in-vitro cultures, micro-organisms and plants can be used. In addition to this, experiments can be conducted on nonliving systems like chemical cultures. With the increased use of technology, computer stimulated systems can be used to conduct experiments and study the effects of various drugs and chemicals on human organs (US Congress, 113). Work Cited Anderegg, Christopher, et al. “A Critical Look at Animal Experimentation.” Medical Research Modernization Committee. 2006. Retrieved from http://mrmcmed.org/Critical_Look.pdf RDS’s “Medical Advances and Animal Research: The contribution of animal science to the medical revolution – some case studies” RDS: Understanding Animal research in Medicine & Coalition for Medical Progress. 2007. Retrieved from http://www.pro-test.org.uk/MAAR.pdf SOT’s “Animals in Research: The Importance of Animals in the Science of Toxicology”. Science of Toxicology. 2006. Retrieved from http://www.toxicology.org/ai/air/AIR_Final.pdf Botting, Jack H. & Morrison, Adrian R. “Animal Research is Vital to Medicine”. Scientific American. 1997. Retrieved from http://www.indiana.edu/~acoustic/s685/Rowan-1997.pdf Bernard, Neal D. & Kaufman, Stephen R. “Animal Research is Wasteful and Misleading”. Scientific American. 1997. Retrieved from http://www.indiana.edu/~acoustic/s685/Rowan-1997.pdf US Congress Office of Technology Assessment. “Alternatives to Animal Use in Research, testing and Education”. US Government Printing Office. 1986. Retrieved from http://www.fas.org/ota/reports/8601.pdf Read More