Project R&R director Theodora Capaldo, EdD, offered ethical and scientific arguments supporting an end to the use of chimpanzees in research at the annual Public Responsibility in Medicine and Research (PRIM&R) conference, the Boston Park Plaza, on March 27.

Capaldo, was joined by Kathleen Conlee, director of program management, Animal Research Issues at The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and Linda Brent, President, Chimp Haven, to host a panel entitled “Should Chimpanzees Be Laboratory Animals: Prevailing Laws Concerning Importation, Breeding, the Status of the Sanctuary Program, and the General Ethical Dilemma.”

The use of chimpanzees in research troubles both the public and, increasingly, many scientists as well.” noted Capaldo. “Despite its ethical and scientific flaws it is difficult to change established habits. Forums such as PRIM&R help move the debate into action.

PRIM&R conferences offer employees of research institutions, hospitals, universities, the federal government, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries to receive training and the opportunity to consider “key issues related to human and animal subjects in research.”

The annual PRIM&R conferences also provide instruction for members of Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees (IACUCS) responsible for approving the use of animals in research protocols per the Animal Welfare Act. Repeated audits by the USDA’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) have noted continuing issues with IACUCs.

Co-sponsors for the conference were:

• Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care (AAALAC International)
• Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare, National Institutes of Health (OLAW/NIH)
• United States Department of Agriculture, APHIS (USDA/APHIS)

For more information on the 2006 Annual IACUC Conference:
http://www.primr.org/