Little Progress Shown in Home Office Statistics Primates The latest figures from the Home Office have shown that the number of animals involved in experiments in the UK has gone up again. The 2010 Statistics of Scientific Procedures on Living Animals revealed a total of just over 3.7 million. The rise is almost entirely due to the continued increase in the breeding and use of genetically altered animals. The 3% increase on 2009 brings the number to the highest level since the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA) came into force. There had been a slow decline since the Act was introduced, but the last decade saw a new trend as genetically altered (GA) animals became more significant in research. The 2010 total is more than a million higher than the lowest record in 2001.
Types of animals used in 2010 The main types of animals used are mice, fish and rats, which together make up 93% of all procedures. The largest increases in procedures in 2010 involved fish (up 23% to 490,944), birds (up
Animal type
No. of proceddures 2010
Mouse
2,670,067
+2
305,139
–9
13,660
–29
6,247
–5
14,833
–10
Cat
187
–32
Dog
5,782
–2
Ferret
792
–11
Other carnivore
771
–23
3,175
–15
Sheep
37,795
–1
Cattle
3,585
–18
Other ungulate
8,457
–6
Primate
4,688
+10
Other mammal
1,214
–8
142,034
+12
15,356
–27
490,944
+23
3,724,726
+3
Rat Guinea-pig Other rodent Rabbit
Pig
Bird Reptile/amphibian Fish Total
6
Change from 2009 (%)
12% to 142,034), and primates (up 10% to 4,688). The largest decreases were in procedures involving cats (down 32% to 187), guinea-pigs (down 29% to 13,660), and reptiles and amphibians (down 27.5% to 15,356). These figures represent the number of procedures carried out, not the number of animals involved. Full details can be seen in the table.
Purposes of the research The majority of procedures were conducted for breeding GA animals (44%), an increase of 6%. The second highest increase was in fundamental biological research (35%), which has risen by 10% since 2009. This section includes studies on cancer, genetics, immunology and physiology and reflects a continued rise in the animal experimentation conducted in universities.
Work in universities first overtook the number of procedures in the commercial sector in 2002. Since then the trend has continued. The commercial decline is driven by a reduction in the number of toxicology procedures being undertaken, which went down by 11 per cent in 2010. The remaining tests were mainly for pharmaceutical compounds and to meet a combination of legislative requirements.
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It is extremely disappointing that the UK continues to use primates in laboratories, and that more procedures on them are conducted here than in all the other EU Member States. Their high level of sentience means that primates can anticipate and remember events that cause them distress, so they have the potential to suffer greatly in experimental procedures. It is also very difficult to provide for their sophisticated behavioural and social needs in the laboratory setting. The 2010 UK statistics show that the number of procedures conducted on primates rose by 10% to 4688, although the actual number of animals decreased slightly. Just over 2000 procedures involved the re-use of animals. Each re-use must be specially authorised by the Home Office, and is generally conditional upon the animal having suffered no significant adverse effects as a consequence of the first use. However, given the capacity for primates to understand what happens to them in terms of whether it will cause them pain and distress, there must be concern that the cumulative effects of re-use, even when only mild procedures are involved, may significantly compromise their welfare. The recently-published Bateson Review of Research Using Non-Human Primates found that one in ten of the primate research programmes reviewed had led to no clear scientific, medical or social benefit (see page 8). It is hoped that reviews of this nature will continue to be conducted to ensure that work such as this is identified and prevented from being repeated. Further resources, collaboration and dissemination must be initiated to work towards replacement of the need for primate models altogether.
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