Replace, reduce and refine: the 3Rs of animal studies
GSK’s ethical policies and the regulatory framework within which we operate mean that we are constantly trying to replace, reduce and refine our animal testing.
Some examples of new tests and procedures that we have developed or adopted include:
- blood spot technology
- an award-winning screening system to identify safety issues very early in the development of possible medicines
- magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
Blood spot technology
Blood samples from animals are often required in research for a range of measurements, such as examining the distribution and concentration of a potential new medicine in the body. Traditionally, scientists have used plasma (the liquid part of the blood) to carry out these measurements.
The blood is commonly removed from animals – such as a rat – in the same way blood would be taken from a person - using a needle and vials. The plasma and the blood cells are then separated so the plasma can be tested.
Advances in analytical methods mean that some of these measurements can now be carried out using whole blood collected as blood spots. Whole blood spots can be gathered through the ‘heel prick’ or ‘Guthrie’ test – a method that has been used for years to screen newborn babies for a range of disorders. Each blood spot is collected by placing a drop onto a special blood spot card. We can then analyse samples from the cards in a manner similar to that used for plasma samples.
The advantage to the blood spot method is that it uses significantly less blood – about a tenth of the volume required with the traditional sampling method. The smaller volume is an important advance. If less blood volume is required, then samples collected over a time period can be provided by fewer animals, rather than needing several animals for large volumes of blood. We predict this approach could reduce the number of animals used by up to 40 per cent for some types of studies.
Screening system
One of our teams has developed a software system that allows a computer to screen possible new medicines for potential safety issues at a much earlier stage than before. The system, known as Molecular Clinical Safety Intelligence (MCSI), compares the profiles of possible medicines to those that have already been tested.
It is the first system to bring together knowledge of chemistry, human and animal safety, drug metabolism, and pharmacology. It allows scientists to evaluate new medicines as they are being designed and synthesized in the laboratory and before they are researched in animals or humans. This saves researchers from spending years on developing promising new medicines that ultimately cannot be licensed because of potentially harmful side-effects. It also prevents any animal testing that would have been required during development.
The team that developed MCSI won the 2008 Wall Street Journal Technology Innovation Award for Healthcare IT for this new system.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
MRI allows us to see soft tissues in fine detail. It is a very powerful tool as it can show researchers changes in organs and tissues by studying images from one animal or human taken over a period of time.
Because we can see what is happening during and after treatment, we can use less invasive experiments. In addition, the number of experiments and the number of animals involved is reduced. This is because we can compare the changes that happen to a single animal over time, instead of needing to study separate animals at different points through the process.
Awards for putting the 3Rs into practice
We believe it’s important that individual efforts to achieve the 3Rs are recognised. We therefore offer an Animal Welfare Award to those in GSK who successfully develop alternative testing methods and other practices that demonstrate our commitment to the 3Rs.
We also sponsor the annual UK National Centre for the 3Rs prize, which recognises published work that advances, or has the potential to advance, knowledge in the 3Rs.