Dr Matthew Clark, director of scientific services at Elsevier discusses what animal testing really tells us about human safety.
animal testing
Animal testing has been vital to medical research and understanding diseases for years. Of the 106 Nobel Prizes awarded for Medicine or Physiology, 94 have involved animal tests in their research. However, given the continued pressure from governments, societies, and animal welfare groups, life science companies are looking for ways to decrease animal testing. A 2010 directive from the European Union specifically calls on companies to “reduce and refine the use of animals” for scientific purposes.