Daneshian M, Akbarsha M, Blaauboer B, Caloni F, Cosson P, Curren R, Goldberg A, Gruber F, Ohl F, Pfaller W, van der Valk J, Vinardell P, Zurlo J, Hartung T, Leist M. A framework program for the teaching of alternative methods (replacement, reduction, refinement) to animal experimentation. ALTEX - Alternatives to animal experimentation. 2011, 28,4:341-352


Abstract

Development of improved communication and education strategies is important to make alternatives
to the use of animals, and the broad range of applications of the 3Rs concept better known and understood
by different audiences. For this purpose, the Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing in Europe
(CAAT-Europe) together with the Transatlantic Think Tank for Toxicology (t4) hosted a three-day workshop
on “Teaching Alternative Methods to Animal Experimentation”.
A compilation of the recommendations by a group of international specialists in the field is summarized
in this report. Initially, the workshop participants identified the different audience groups to be addressed
and also the communication media that may be used. The main outcome of the workshop was a framework
for a comprehensive educational program. The modular structure of the teaching program presented here
allows adaptation to different audiences with their specific needs; different time schedules can be easily
accommodated on this basis. The topics cover the 3Rs principle, basic research, toxicological applications,
method development and validation, regulatory aspects, case studies and ethical aspects of 3Rs approaches.
This expert consortium agreed to generating teaching materials covering all modules and providing them in
an open access online repository.



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Link to journal: www.altex.org