Between 1,300-1,400 chimpanzees currently live in U.S. laboratories. Chimpanzees in captivity can live to be 60 years of age, so any chimpanzees bred today could live as research subjects for up to six decades—and at taxpayer expense.
If the biomedical industry stopped using chimpanzees in research and testing, thousands of animal lives would improve for years to come, research quality would improve, and taxpayers would see the benefits. A recent move by the U.S. National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) has moved that possibility one step closer to reality.
In a move supported by The HSUS, the NCRR recently extended the breeding moratorium on research chimpanzees that has been in effect since 1995. The NCRR is a division of National Institutes of Health (NIH) that oversees federally-supported and owned chimpanzees currently being used or held for biomedical research, the eight National Primate Research Centers, and the national chimpanzee sanctuary system.
The breeding moratorium means that fewer chimpanzees will be bred for biomedical research and testing. While the moratorium is only temporary, The HSUS is appealing to the NCRR for permanent adoption of the moratorium.
"The costs associated with chimpanzee research are high—ethically, scientifically and financially," says Kathleen Conlee, director of program management for animal research issues at The HSUS. "The needs of chimpanzees simply cannot be met in laboratories. It is time for the United States to join the rest of the world and end this practice."
The NCRR decision was based on an earlier decision of the National Advisory Research Resources Council (NARRC), which recently advised the NCRR to extend the current moratorium on breeding of federally-supported or "owned" chimpanzees until the end of 2007. The NARRC decision was based on an initial recommendation of the Chimpanzee Management Plan (ChiMP) Working Group, a panel convened by the NARRC to extend the breeding moratorium through 2006. NCRR's resulting decision will affect the approximately 850 chimps supported or owned by NCRR and housed at six facilities throughout the United States. The council cited the need for additional assessment of the current chimpanzee colony, the decreasing demand for chimps in research, and the high cost of housing as the primary reasons for their decision.
Poor Practice, Bad Results
History has shown that the move toward ending research on chimps not only improve conditions for animals, but can also improve the integrity of research. Results obtained from chimp research do not always translate accurately to humans, even though they are our 'closest cousins.' In the 1980s chimpanzees were heavily bred for use in HIV research. Scientists then discovered that chimpanzees are not a good model for HIV research.
The recent unveiling of the chimpanzee genome has added fuel to the debate. The genome details biological similarities and differences between chimpanzees and humans, causing some in the biomedical research community to call for an increase in chimpanzee use. Others in the scientific community consider the findings ethical grounds to stop using the species in research. They point to our obligation to the species, and advocate protecting them from harmful research.
Chimpanzees, including the animals bred for research in laboratories, experience a range of emotions, including depression, anxiety, pain, distress, and empathy. These complex cognitive abilities and emotions make confinement of chimpanzees in cages and their use in research highly questionable on ethical grounds. These highly intelligent creatures also possess complex mental abilities, including self-conception, anticipation of future events, mathematical skills, tool use, and acquisition of languages created by humans.
Alternatives Methods on the Rise
Amid the debate, the number of federally-funded chimpanzee projects has decreased by half in the past four years. In the past 10 years, three large chimpanzee research facilities have closed. The decreasing reliance on chimpanzees stems in part from the development of alternative methods that allow scientists to rely on human tissue and cell cultures instead of testing on the animals. Increased attention to, and funding for alternatives to chimpanzee research could be an essential component to more quickly retiring chimpanzees from research.
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" The decreasing reliance on chimpanzees stems in part from the development of alternative methods that allow scientists to rely on human tissue and cell cultures instead of testing on the animals." |
While the breeding moratorium extension is a step in the right direction, The HSUS continues to seek a permanent halt to the breeding and use of chimpanzees in research and testing. To that end, in 2005, The HSUS and other international animal protection organizations presented a historic resolution calling for an end to the use of non-human primates in biomedical research and testing. One aim is for the United States to join the many other countries, including Austria, Great Britain, New Zealand, Sweden, and the Netherlands, that already prohibit research on great apes.
What Can I Do?
If you would like to help end research on chimpanzees, e-mail the NCRR, thank them for extending the breeding moratorium, and ask that the moratorium be adopted permanently.
