THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF ENGINEERING

Scientific and Ethical Justification for Using Animals in Research

The acceptability of using animals in research rests on the twin expectations that the research findings will be meaningful and substantial and that the suffering will be minimal. It is also expected that society as a whole will participate in assessing the extent to which the first two expectations are met. The view that human beings have the right to make this decision is based on various philosophical arguments.

The Scientific Justification

For research based on an animal model, the validity of science is dependent on the validity of the animal model, that is, it is dependent upon the extent to which experimental findings in the animal model can be generalized to other species, particularly humans.

The Ethical Justification

The ethical justification for the use of animals in research converges with the scientific and in some respects depends on it. It is based upon the view that increasing the knowledge base makes it possible to develop therapies that mitigate pain and suffering caused by illness and trauma, and thereby responds to the moral imperative to do good. It assumes that research can be carried out with no or minimal discomfort or distress to the animal research subjects, and that any pain and suffering experienced is compensated for by the alleviation of human pain and suffering caused by disease and injury.

• Return to Research Ethics Module Supporting Pages

• Risks to the Data

• Data Sharing and Intellectual Property in Bioinformatics

National Academy of Engineering

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