''La mayoría de los países aplica la teoría de reemplazar, refinar y reducir el número de animales en sus experimentos''
''Most countries apply the theory of replacing, refining and reducing the issue of animals in their experiments.''
80 researchers from the University of Navarra participate in the conference of the Spanish network of Alternative Methods to Animal Experimentation.
According to Michael Festing, author of more than 200 publications on Genetics of animals from laboratory, "most countries apply the 3R theory that consists of replacing, refining and reducing the use of animals for experimentation". This was stated by the expert, who was a member of the UK Animal Procedures, Institute of Laboratory Animal Research, during the V workshop of the Spanishnetwork of Alternative Methods to Animal Experimentation (REMA), organized at the University of Navarra.
The meeting, which took place at the research center Applied Medicine (CIMA) of the University of Navarra, was attended by more than 80 researchers from area science. On the first day the scientists attended an experimental workshop with animals from laboratory to position by Professor Festing, who also gave a talk on Genetics and design of experiments. Also, Javier Guillén, former president of the Federation of European Animal Laboratory Societies (FELASA) and member of ICLAS (International Council for Laboratory Animal Science), explained to the scientists the novelties of the new European legal framework for research with animals.
In this regard, Michel Festing assured that the new European directive "will help the countries of the European Union to achieve the highest ethical standards in the use of animals for the research, linked to the lines set by FELASA".
For the specialist, whose work focuses precisely on reducing the issue of animals used in this field, researchers should only use the minimum issue of animals necessary to answer the scientific question they have posed: "This is already applied in most EU countries, where the legislation is also very specific, as in Brazil, Australia, Canada or Japan. In the case of China we are not so sure, but we hope that it is also being accepted."
In addition to this expert, Guillermo Repetto, from the Pablo de Olavide University; Carles Callol, from Biobide; Maya Vilá, from Leitat; and María Jesús Garrido and Xabi Aguirre, from the University of Navarra, also participated in the conference .