---
title: "Animal testing"
chunk: 15/15
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_testing"
category: "reference"
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
date_saved: "2026-05-05T10:01:38.284993+00:00"
instance: "kb-cron"
---

Most scientists and governments state that animal testing should cause as little suffering to animals as possible, and that animal tests should only be performed when there is no alternative. The "Three Rs" are guiding principles for the use of animals in research in most countries. Whilst replacement of animals, i.e. alternatives to animal testing, is one of the principles, their scope is much broader. Although such principles have been welcomed as a step forwards by some animal welfare groups, they have also been criticized as both outdated by current research, and of little practical effect in improving animal welfare. The scientists and engineers at Harvard's Wyss Institute have created "organs-on-a-chip", including the "lung-on-a-chip" and "gut-on-a-chip". Researchers at cellasys in Germany developed a "skin-on-a-chip". These tiny devices contain human cells in a 3-dimensional system that mimics human organs. The chips can be used instead of animals in in vitro disease research, drug testing, and toxicity testing. Researchers have also begun using 3-D bioprinters to create human tissues for in vitro testing.
Another non-animal research method is in silico or computer simulation and mathematical modeling which seeks to investigate and ultimately predict toxicity and drug effects on humans without using animals. This is done by investigating test compounds on a molecular level using recent advances in technological capabilities with the ultimate goal of creating treatments unique to each patient. Microdosing is another alternative to the use of animals in experimentation. Microdosing is a process whereby volunteers are administered a small dose of a test compound allowing researchers to investigate its pharmacological affects without harming the volunteers. Microdosing can replace the use of animals in pre-clinical drug screening and can reduce the number of animals used in safety and toxicity testing. Additional alternative methods include positron emission tomography (PET), which allows scanning of the human brain in vivo, and comparative epidemiological studies of disease risk factors among human populations. Simulators and computer programs have also replaced the use of animals in dissection, teaching and training exercises.
Official bodies such as the European Centre for the Validation of Alternative Test Methods of the European Commission, the Interagency Coordinating Committee for the Validation of Alternative Methods in the US, ZEBET in Germany, and the Japanese Center for the Validation of Alternative Methods (among others) also promote and disseminate the 3Rs. These bodies are mainly driven by responding to regulatory requirements, such as supporting the cosmetics testing ban in the EU by validating alternative methods. The European Partnership for Alternative Approaches to Animal Testing serves as a liaison between the European Commission and industries. The European Consensus Platform for Alternatives coordinates efforts amongst EU member states. Academic centers also investigate alternatives, including the Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing at the Johns Hopkins University and the NC3Rs in the UK.

== See also ==

== References ==

=== Citations ===

=== Works cited ===
Carbone L (2004). What animals want: expertise and advocacy in laboratory animal welfare policy. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-972188-7. OCLC 57138138.

== Further reading ==

== External links ==
 Media related to Animal testing at Wikimedia Commons
 Quotations related to Animal testing at Wikiquote