Use of animals for experimentation, use of animals for research, Thomas Aquinas, British Royal society, new medicines, new vaccines, dissection of animals, FDA food and drug administration
From the beginning of time, before confirming the efficiency of a product, especially in the medical sciences, there is always a need for experimentation. In fact, to understand diseases and develop treatments, one of the most used ways by researchers is the animal model. Over the years, this use of animals for research purposes has raised ethical questions and debates in different societies around the globe. On the one hand, for scientists, animal research is not an end in itself but a step in the process. On the other hand, in the society, as among researchers, this use of animals has raised moral questions, as well as a desire to minimise the stress exerted on these sentient beings.
[...] Also, researchers use animals for experimentation because of their high similarity to humans. In fact, in the past generations, Chimpanzees were frequently used by researchers because their genetic profile matches at 99% the one of humans. But nowadays, researchers usually use mice, which have 98% of genetic similarity to humans. Plus, legally, if a product causes negative effects on a person, it will be a serious problem compared to the situation where animals were used. The consequences of killing or hurting a mouse or chimpanzee are less serious than when a human is involved. [...]
[...] The use of animals for research purposes and its advantages In the beginning of the ancient Greece, using animals for research purposes did not really raise moral questions. The so-called or supposed resemblance of human beings to their deities granted them certain superiority in the chain of being. In other words, humans were kind of allowed to dominate on other species. So, dissecting animals for research purposes was totally logic. At that time, animals were considered as part of the world like water and earth, and were supposed to be used by humans. [...]
[...] One of the disadvantages of using animals for experimentation is the non-utilisation of the products. In fact, after animals being killed, most of the products are never used, sold or administered to humans. So, all the animals used in such practices lost their lives for nothing. The use of animals is just there to weaken the biodiversity. Also, the cost to take care of animals that will be used for experimentation is high. Sometimes, researchers buy those animals or they simply go in the wild environment like forests to get them. [...]
[...] If we consider HIV, over 100 of vaccines were proposed because of their positive result on primates. But, when tried on humans, it's been a failure. Plus, one of the serious problems of using animals for experimentation is the research practises that might be poor. The problem is that poor research conditions can lead to positive result. There is a high risk that products from such experimentations will be very harmful to humans. According to analysts, such problems will always exist. Another problem with animal research is the reverse data possibility. [...]
[...] That's the reason why this use of animals for experimentation is called bad science by some research, doctors, etc. They say that the results obtained through those experimentations have no scientific value. That is the core of the moral and ethical debates around this use of animals. In fact, the estimation says that every year, almost 11.5 million of animals are killed in Europe for research purposes. In China and the USA, the number of used animals reaches 60 million per year. [...]
APA Style reference
For your bibliographyOnline reading
with our online readerContent validated
by our reading committee
