The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently announced the availability of an alternative-test guideline for assessing the potential of chemicals to cause skin sensitization, a reaction also known as allergic contact dermatitis or ACD. Potential users of the Murine Local Lymph Node Assay (LLNA) can now begin submitting LLNA data to the EPA.

The EPA had earlier accepted the LLNA, but those interested in using the test had to wait for the federal agency to issue the guideline for how it wanted the test conducted. With the guideline in place, researchers can now turn to LLNA, which uses fewer animals (in this case, mice) and causes less suffering per animal than the traditional method, the Guinea Pig Maximization Test.

The EPA's official adoption of LLNA has been nearly five years in the making. The federal government, through the U.S. Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Validation of Alternative Methods (ICCVAM), first approved the LLNA as a validated alternative to the guinea pig test in 1998.

The HSUS hopes that it won't take as long for other federal agencies to accept the LLNA and issue an official guideline. "We hope the period of time will decrease dramatically as the government gains more experience evaluating and implementing methods that replace, reduce, or refine animal use," says Dr. Martin Stephens, HSUS vice president for animal research issues.

Source: ICCVAM