Regulations & Ethical Review

European Union legislation for the welfare of animals used for scientific purposes: Areas identified for further discussion

The Directive 2010/63/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council has been in force for more than a decade and has brought about significant improvements and novel requirements for the welfare of animals used for scientific purposes, while safeguarding...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: All/General

Citation: Marinou, K. A., Dontas, I. A. 2023. European Union legislation for the welfare of animals used for scientific purposes: Areas identified for further discussion. Animals 13(14), 2367.

CIRS-LAS – a novel approach to increase transparency in laboratory animal science for improving animal welfare by reducing laboratory animal distress

The 3Rs principle is highly topical in animal-based research. These include, above all, new scientific methods for conducting experiments without an animal model, by using non-animal models (Replace), reducing the number of laboratory animals (Reduction) or taking measures to keep...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: All/General

Citation: Enkelmann, A., Bischoff, S. J. 2023. CIRS-LAS – a novel approach to increase transparency in laboratory animal science for improving animal welfare by reducing laboratory animal distress. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 10.

Fostering animal welfare and advancing 3Rs principles through the establishment of a 3Rsadvisory group

Based on the current state of science, the use of animals remains essential in bringing safe and effective medicines to patients. Respect for laboratory animal welfare and the application of 3Rs principles (the replacement, reduction, and refinement of animal use...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: All/General

Citation: Graham, J. C., Wong, L., Adedeji, A. O. et al. 2023. Fostering animal welfare and advancing 3Rs principles through the establishment of a 3Rsadvisory group. Animals 13(24), 3863.

Severity classification of laboratory animal procedures in two Belgian academic institutions

According to the EU Directive 2010/63, all animal procedures must be classified as non-recovery, mild, moderate or severe. Several examples are included in the Directive to help in severity classification. Since the implementation of the Directive, different publications and guidelines...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: All/General

Citation: De Vleeschauwer, S., Lambaerts, K., Hernot, S. et al. 2023. Severity classification of laboratory animal procedures in two Belgian academic institutions. Animals 13(16), 2581.

Ethical considerations for echinoderms: New initiatives in welfare

This paper explores the ethical considerations surrounding research on echinoderms, a group of invertebrates that has recently garnered attention in the scientific community. The importance of responsible animal handling and the need for an ethical framework that encompasses echinoderms are...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: Invertebrate, Other Invertebrate

Citation: Crespi-Abril, A. C., Rubilar, T. 2023. Ethical considerations for echinoderms: New initiatives in welfare. Animals 13(21), 3377.

Fish intelligence, sentience and ethics

Fish are one of the most highly utilised vertebrate taxa by humans; they are harvested from wild stocks as part of global fishing industries, grown under intensive aquaculture conditions, are the most common pet and are widely used for scientific...

Year Published: 2015Topics: Emotion, Pain, & Sentience, Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: Fish, Other Fish, Salmon, Shark & Ray, Tilapia, Trout, Zebrafish

Citation: Brown, C. 2015. Fish intelligence, sentience and ethics. Animal Cognition 18(1), 1–17.

Fit for Purpose assessment: A new direction for IACUCs

The organization and function of the institutional animal care and use committee (IACUC) is the key component of government regulation and oversight of necessary scientific research using live animals and of AAALAC - International accreditation of animal care and use...

Year Published: 2021Topics: Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: All/General

Citation: Kinter, L. B., Johnson, D. K., Weichbrod, R. H. et al. 2021. Fit for Purpose assessment: A new direction for IACUCs. ILAR Journal 62(3), 314–331.

Guidelines for protecting and promoting insect welfare in research

These guidelines were developed by the leadership of the Insect Welfare Research Society (IWRS). They are intended to provide guidance to individuals researching insects, in laboratory, field, education, and industry contexts. The guidelines are informed by standard principles of animal...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: Insect & Spider, Invertebrate

Citation: Fischer, B., Barrett, M., Adcock, S. et al. 2023. Guidelines for protecting and promoting insect welfare in research. Insect Welfare Research Society.

Mission creep or mission lapse? Scientific review in research oversight

Background: The ethical use both of human and non-human animals in research is predicated on the assumption that it is of a high quality and its projected benefits are more significant than the risks and harms imposed on subjects. Yet...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: All/General

Citation: Waltz, M., Fisher, J. A., Walker, R. L. 2023. Mission creep or mission lapse? Scientific review in research oversight. AJOB Empirical Bioethics 14(1), 38-49.

Defining short-term accommodation for animals

The terms short-term, temporary, and transitional are related but can have different contexts and meanings for animal husbandry. The definitions and use of these terms can be pivotal to animal housing and welfare. We conducted three separate literature searches using...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Housing, Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: All/General

Citation: Warwick, C., Steedman, C., Jessop, M. et al. 2023. Defining short-term accommodation for animals. Animals 13(4), 732.