Research Models
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Regina Kelder
New Frontiers in Animal Research
It’s #Board24 on May 3. Let's celebrate these advances in 3Rs science
On Friday, May 3, the European Animal Research Association will launch its fourth edition of Be Open About Animal Research Day. This event leverages the power of social media to promote a global, 24-hour campaign that celebrates openness by biomedical institutions in communicating animal research.
More than 1,000 biomedical institutions, including Charles River Laboratories, are expected to support the social media campaign and share examples publicly about how they use animals in their research, and why these projects are essential for drug development. Supporters of #BOARD will also be highlighting new alternative technologies that will help replace, reduce, and refine the use of research animals.
Here are several recent stories, hosted by Eureka, Charles River’s scientific blog, that show different ways we are meeting our 3Rs objectives responsibly.
An Alternative to Dirty Bedding Sentinels
Two years ago, Charles River launched a novel soiled-bedding sampling method that can detect rodent pathogens without the need for sentinel animals. It uses a protocol and contact media that optimizes infectious agent detection and reduces variation in the sample collection process as well as the diagnostic laboratory’s processing of the sample. More than 220 institutions have trialed or have implemented PathogenBinder®. Eventually, this environmental monitoring tool could eliminate the need for soiled bedding sentinels. The PCR-based method can now be applied to any cage type, has been reported to cost the same or less to operate, and greatly improves detection of prevalent and commonly excluded agents. It is also an ethically responsible method for replacing a flawed animal-based procedure.
For generations, genetically modified mice were largely genotyped using an invasive ear or tail biopsy. But with the development of easier and faster methodologies to generate genetically altered animals, convenient and humane methods to genotype these animals are increasingly important to research and to meeting 3Rs objectives (to replace, reduce and refine the use of research animals.) Charles River’s Biologics Testing laboratory in Erkrath, Germany, which previously established the value of oral swab genotyping in rabbits, recently adapted the sampling method for mice—the model most widely in research—into its laboratory setup. They found that genotyping mice using oral swabs and implementing it into their workflow was a definite plus and having this noninvasive sampling method also allowed them to meet their 3Rs objectives by minimizing pain and stress in animals.
What if you had the power to encourage research and dialogue across the commercial, government and academic sectors, and help accelerate the adoption of 3Rs principles in the process? What if you could encourage labs to share their data more freely, and push regulatory agencies to be more accepting of alternative methods? The 3Rs Collaborative, which Charles River helped launch in 2016, to advance science, innovation, and research animal welfare, is currently putting its efforts behind seven major initiatives and tries to accelerate the implementation of evidence-based 3Rs techniques and tools. The initiatives are wide-ranging, from organ chips and translational digital biomarkers to environmental health monitoring and compassion fatigue. “Our strategy is to identify key, evidence-based 3Rs approaches, address barriers and promote them in everyday practice,” says the 3RsC Executive Director Megan LaFollette, a PhD scientist from Purdue with a background in animal behavior and animal welfare.
Artificial Intelligence has brought many new and exciting tools into the drug discovery arena. Digital Twins is one example. This technology gives us the ability to create computer replicas of human biology that connects demographics to genetic variation to the molecular variables that drive clinical outcomes. While traditional research models are still need, digital twins can help reduce our reliance on animals by making the drug discovery process more precise. For example, Charles River’s Freiburg site, which specializes in patient-derived xenograft mouse models (mice with human tumors engrafted in them), is partnering with AI biotech company Aitia to create digital twins of PDX mice. “Lots of animals are typically used in traditional drug screening, so if now one can create accurate digital twins and prescreen before animals are used, you can cut down on the use of animals,” says Colin Hill, CEO, and co-founder of Aitia.
