ANIMAL EXPERIMENTS NEED BETTER COMMUNICATION
Read More: Fazit der 3RDays23
The Austrian 3R Days took place in the first week of December in the Tyrolean capital of InNsbruck. The snowy pre-Christmas Innsbruck provided the perfect backdrop for our event, which ran under the motto "3Rdays 2023 InN Motion". We welcomed over 200 national and international guests from the 3R community and together we spent three days full of exciting presentations and workshops. The event offered a perfect opportunity to network and exchange ideas with colleagues and representatives from other disciplines.
Would you like to actively participate in the collection of ideas and innovations for animal-free alternatives in research? If so, then taking part in the next Helpathon would be a good idea.
What is a Helpathon?
A Helpathon is an international networking event created by Daniela Salvatori, Chair of the Transition Program Animal-free Innovations Utrecht and Janneke Hogervorst, from PETA UK, to accelerate the discovery of animal-free alternatives. Communication and knowledge sharing is an essential means of achieving this goal. The last Helpathon focused on research into animal-free antibodies. This year's event is entitled "Animal-free innovation education".
If you still have little idea what it is about, you can watch a video showing excerpts from the 9th Helpathon at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDIC38sydS4&t=15s
When and where will the Helpathon take place this year and how can I take part?
The 10th Helpathon will take place on December 13 and 14 in the afternoon and evening respectively. The venue is the O|2 building of the VU Amsterdam. However, it is also possible to take part in the event online. To celebrate the anniversary, there will also be a networking lunch and a celebration seminar this year.
Registration and choice of participation options are possible under the following link: Registration form Helpathon #10 (google.com)
This year we, the RepRefRed Society/the Austrian 3R Centre (A3RC), took part in the 3R Congress of the Italian 3R Centre, Centro 3R. The conference entitled "The role of 3Rs in the age of One Health: where we are and where we`re going" took place from 13 to 15 September at the Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca in Milan. Numerous, predominantly Italian researchers, including many young, committed researchers, presented their latest inventions and findings in the 3R field. On the first day, the programme included projects to replace animals in the cosmetics industry as well as presentations on new biomaterials and tissue engineering. The following days saw presentations on bioreactors and microfluidic devices, alternatives for in vivo validation, NAMs (new approach methodologies) and nanomaterials, 3D cell cultures and organoids, in silico models and much more.
A big thank you to the organisers of these 3R Days and to all the researchers who gave us an insight into their latest findings and inventions.
Under the following link you will find the programme of the congress: https://www.centro3r.it/sites/default/files/program_IV_convegno_3R.pdf
The abstracts of the event can be found here:
https://www.centro3r.it/sites/default/files/abstract_book_IV_convegno_3R_0.pdf
Every year, the European Research Council, a funding organization founded by the European Commission, awards the Synergy Grant. This year, a total of 395 million euros in prize money will go to 37 projects involving 135 researchers from a wide range of scientific disciplines.
The abstract submission for the Austrian 3Rdays 2023 in Innsbruck was extended!
Click here for the abstract submission. We are looking forward to your contributions!
Tech3Rs is a regular newsletter providing animal technicians with the latest news from the NC3Rs. Each issue features updates on recent advances in the 3Rs and highlights new resources, research and events that we think will be of interest to animal technicians. The Swiss 3R Competence Center (3RCC) and Charité 3R provide translations in German, French and Italian.
To the Newsletter: https://nc3rs.org.uk/tech3rs-newsletter
Find the translations: https://swiss3rcc.org/de/unsere-projekte/tech3r-newsletter
The congress website of the Austrian 3Rdays is now online!
From 29.11.-1.12.2023 the 46th annual meeting of the Austrian Society for Surgical Research (Österreichischen Gesellschaft für Chirurgische Forschung) will take place in Schladming (AT). The RepRefRed Society will be represented at this meeting with a presentation on "3Rs in Surgical Research". Please find here the program of the meeting.
Fincopa, the Finnish National Consensus Platform for Alternatives and Ecopa, the European Consensus Platform on Alternatives are inviting to the joint workshop on Replacing animal experiments in science and in regulative testing on the 6th of October 2023 via Teams and on site at UPM Biofore House, Helsinki
Meet Ing. Astrid Fabry with her poster on ReHome, the 4th "R", at the GV Solas conference in Mainz!
The abstract submission for the Austrian 3Rdays 2023 in Innsbruck is now open!
Click here for the abstract submission. We are looking forward to your contributions!
From August 27-31, the 12th World Congress on Alternatives and Animal Use in the Life Sciences was held in Niagara. The RepRefRed Society was also represented at the congress with a presentation on 3Rs and how to communicate.
The EPAA (The European Partnership for Alternative Approaches to Animal Testing) is launching the Refinement Award again this year for laboratory technicians, animal care technicians, technologists, master's/doctoral students and postdocs who have made an exceptional contribution to refinement in animal testing. Application deadline is 18.09.2023
Welcome Astrid Fabry as rehoming officer for the RepRefRed Society and the Austrian 3R Center. Through Astrid's expertise and her successful collaboration with My-Second-Life Lab Animal Aid Austria, many rats, mice and guinea pigs have already found new homes in private hands. Because for the ONE it makes the difference. Find out more under "Rehoming".
SAVE THE DATE! From December 5 to 7, 2023, the Austrian 3R Days will take place in Innsbruck.
As in previous years, the Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research (BMBWF) is again awarding the State Prize for the Promotion of Alternative Methods to Animal Experiments to honour high-calibre scientific work based on the 3R principles of Russell and Burch.
A mini-symposium on continuing education for conscious research with laboratory animals will be held at the Medical University of Vienna on June 5, 2023. The mini-symposium can be attended on-site or online. Find more details about the event here.
From September 26-28, the 2022 EUSAAT Congress on "Alternatives to Animal Testing" took place in Linz, Austria.
The RepRefRed Society will host a business lunch in Lecture Hall 1 at the 2022 EUSAAT Congress on September 27.
Submissions are now open for the European Partnership for Alternative Approaches to Animal Testing's (EPAA) 3Rs Science Prize 2022.
The European Society for Alternatives to Animal Testing organizes the 23rd EUSAAT Congress at the University of Linz from September 26-28, 2022. The first 3Rs congress in Europe in 2022.
The CENTER FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH at the Medical University Vienna invites to a two-days workshop about "How to increase reproducibility in animal trials? Dilemmas and strategies" from the 9th-10th of June 2022 in the Emanuel Merck Auditorium at the Medical University of Vienna.
The Italian Centro 3R (Centro Interuniversitario per la Promozione dei Principi delle 3R nella Didattica e nella Ricerca) has published their newsletter for January 2022! Inside you will find current topics on the 3Rs, with a focus on developments in Italy, as well as links to registrations for upcoming events, such as Biofabrication 2022.
Focus on severe suffering
The RSPCA, in cooperation with EFPIA (European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations), will hold a webinar on "How the pharmaceutical industry is tackling 'severe' suffering in animals used in science" on January 26, 2022 as part of this initiative.
Animal-free culture models are more and more in demand, not only for translational research and for the future clinical application of cell culture products. Consequently, human platelet lysate is increasingly replacing the previously used fetal bovine serum (FBS) in various research fields, especially for mesenchymal stroma cell expansion and in other areas of cell therapy and regenerative medicine.
The term "error culture" refers to the way in which companies, facilities, or individuals deal with mistakes and their resulting consequences. For example, in environments with a non-existent or weak error culture, errors are not properly communicated, eventually leading to their repetition. In a good and open error culture, on the other hand, errors are communicated at the company in order to find their causes and generate potential solutions. Depending on the structure of the facility, a key point is a certain degree of anonymity in order to encourage employees not to conceal mistakes and to actively participate in the communication process.
We are happy to announce that Dr. Giuliano Corte from Freie Universität Berlin and his team have published their paper "Anatomical Evaluation of Rat and Mouse Simulators for Laboratory Animal Science Courses" in the special issue "The Welfare of Laboratory Animals" of the journal Animals! We were already able to catch an exciting glimpse of this work at 3R Days 2021 in November. We are sure that this work will be an important contribution to the future development of more realistic and functional animal simulators, leading to less stress on animals used for training purposes!
During the 3Rs days, Dr. Bernhard Voelkl from the University of Bern gave a presentation on reproducibility issues in animal experiments and how these can be counteracted. Together with Prof. Hanno Würbel, a video has been produced as part of this work through support from the Swiss National Science Foundation, the NC3Rs and the European Research Council, which is intended to illustrate the problem and show researchers possible solutions for their own projects.
When it comes to the question of pulmonary toxicity of aerosols, animal models still represent the gold standard. However, progress in recent years gives hope that alternative methods will gain a stronger foothold in this so far relatively unexplored area, especially since these models are characterized by their high efficiency. PD Dr. Eleonore Fröhlich, scientist at the Medical University of Graz, will speak at the upcoming 3R Days about her work on this topic, explain the important aspects of these models and present different in vitro systems including examples of their use.
Cholangiocarcinoma is a rare type of tumor of the biliary tract that is usually detected at very late stages due to nonspecific symptoms and is characterized by resistance to chemo- and radiotherapy. In order to better study the disease, appropriate cell culture models are needed to examine signal transduction pathways and develop new therapeutic approaches.
This is why Silke Schrom, PhD candidate at the Medical University of Graz, will present a 3D cell culture model that will help to meet these requirements during the upcoming 3R Days. We are looking forward to it!
Currently Organs-on-a-chip are probably the most publicly perceived replacement method for animal experiments. They allow for the biological, chemical and physical manipulation of microphysiological systems and analysis of minimal functional units of human organs and tissues.Therefore, we are pleased that Univ.Prof. DI Dr. Peter Ertl, researcher at the Technical University of Vienna, will talk about the current state-of-the-art and selected applications for organs-on-a-chip in personalized medicine during the upcoming 3R Days.
Fetal bovine serum is still a component of many cell cultures in preclinical research since it provides a broad spectrum of molecules known to support cell attachment and growth and is relatively cheap to aquire. Human platelet lysate on the other hand offers a promising alternative to make cell cultures completely animal free without the ethical concerns regarding the large scale extraction of FBS. Dr. Anna Kolkmann, scientist at PL BioScience, will present a HPL-based platform called ELAREM and talk about HPL outperforming FBS as cell culture media.
We are very excited to announce that Dr. Christoph Giese, Director of Quality Control, Bioassays Cell and Tissue Services at ProBioGen AG, will be speaking about using the Human Artificial Lymph Node Model(HuALN) for biopharmaceutical testing and disease modelling during the upcoming 3R Days!
Building on the first two presentations in the series "The mouse model in SARS-CoV-2 research", Dr. Roberto Plasenzotti, Head of the Department for Laboratory Animal Science and Genetics at the Medical University of Vienna, will explain how the 3Rs can be incorporated into these infection models and why the use of species-specific viruses may be a better approach than infecting transgenic animals with human strains.
In the second part of the series, "The mouse model in SARS-CoV-2 research," Dr. Manuel Salzmann, scientist at the Medical University of Vienna, will talk about the details of the mouse model his research group used to study the effectiveness of a bacterial lysate as a complementary preventive measure in tackling the current pandemic.
In a three-part series, MedUniVienna scientists will talk about the mouse as a model in SARS-CoV-2 research as a case study for implementing the 3Rs. Dr. Philipp Hohensinner, a scientist at the Medical University of Vienna, will begin the series with an introduction to betacoronaviruses and how the mouse hepatitis virus can serve as a model for SARS-CoV-2 research. We look forward to it!
Modern imaging techniques are a method of choice if the aim is to reduce the number of animals while retaining the same information gain, and depending on the study, they also represent a valuable non-invasive refinement of gathering information. In order to illustrate the available methods with practical examples and thus give guidance to other scientists for a potential application, Dr. Diwoky will give a lecture during the 3R days on magnetic resonance imaging in the preclinical setting. We look forward to it!
There is often the question of how, in addition to improved statistical methods or imaging diagnostics, the required number of animals in experiments can be reduced while maintaining the same amount of information. Dr. Thomas Birngruber, scientist at JOANNEUM RESEARCH Forschungsgesellschaft m.b.H. will talk at the 3R Days about Open Flow Microperfusion, a method that achieves exactly that and in some cases can even serve as a replacement.
Adequate pain management is one of the most important approaches to ensure animal welfare in animal experiments. However, there is often concern that certain anesthetics may influence the results of scientific studies. Therefore, there is often a reluctance to replace existing protocols with more modern and effective approaches to analgesia.
At the upcoming 3R-Days, Dr. Akos Szakmary, member of the Advisory Committee for Animal Experiments at the Vetmeduni Vienna, will explain why the concern about possible influences on study results should be the very reason to improve pain management and what influence pain can have on study results.
Prof. Dr. Paul Jennings, chair of the Division of Molecular and Computational Toxicology at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, will be sharing his experience using human iPSCs (induced pluripotent stem cells) for toxicological research. Throughout the talk Prof Jennings will outline the potential of iPSCs as well as the challenges one might encounter when working with this type of cells. The talk is scheduled for Scientific Day 2, Nov. 12, 2021.
Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis which damages joint cartilage and surrounding tissue and affects millions of people worldwide. A healthy and active lifestyle is key to preventing this disease or, if already present, to slowing down the progression of symptoms. PD Mag. Dr. Birgit Lohberger, who works at the Department of Orthopedics and Trauma at the Medical University of Graz, will talk about studying the mechanical stimulation of cartilage cells in vitro to learn more about the key factors of OA. We are looking forward to it! Dr. Lohberger`s talk is scheduled for Scientific Day 1 on Nov. 11, 2021.
Next up: Sen.Scientist PD Mag. Dr. Alexander Deutsch, who works at the Clinical Division of Hematology at the Medical University of Graz. Dr. Deutsch will be speaking about how he investigated immune evasion in aggressive lymphoma. The talk is scheduled for Scientific Day 2, Nov 12. 2021. We are looking forward to it!
We are happy to announce that PD DI Dr. Winfried Neuhaus, president of the European Society for Alternatives to Animal Testing, will be speaking about the establishment of EU3Rnet, a network of European 3R centers and societies. The aim of EU3Rnet is to bring together European 3R centres and societies to share best practices, improve communication, support information exchange and prepare the ground for joint initiatives. Dr. Neuhaus talk is scheduled for Scientific Day 1, Nov. 11, 2021.
Univ.-Prof. Mag.Dr.rer.nat. Doris Wilflingseder, creative mind behind the MUI animalFree research cluster and deputy chairwoman of the RepRefRed Society, will hold a workshop about epithelial barrier models during the 3R Days. Within the workshop Prof. Wilflinseder will give a practical overview how to culture different respiratory 3D barrier models. The workshop is scheduled for Scientific Day 2 on Nov. 12, 2021.
Next up in our series of speakers is Priv.-Doz. Mag. Dr. Wilfried Posch from the Division of Hygiene and Medical Microbiology, Medical University of Innsbruck! Dr. Posch will be speaking about the use of animal free 3D cell culture to detect novel therapeutic targets for SARS-CoV-2. The presentation is scheduled for Scientific Day 2 on Nov. 12, 2021.
We are excited to announce Dr. Alexandra Maertens, who works at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing, as one of our many 3R-Day speakers! Dr. Maertens will be speaking about how to take advantage of modern machine learning to map out mechanisms of toxicity - without animals.
We are happy to announce that Dr. Johannes Hackethal, founder of the company THT Biomaterials, will be a speaker on Scientific Day 2 (Nov. 12, 2021) during the upcoming 3R Days. Dr. Hackethal will speak about how the use of human placenta could make personalized medicine more accessible, while replacing the use of animals at the same time.
Dr. Bernhard Voelkl from the University of Bern will give a presentation at the upcoming 3R Days on the influence of biological variability on the reproducibility of preclinical studies. This will show how taking variation into account can lead to more information and reduced animal numbers.
A cross-European group of 3Rs centres, such as the NC3Rs and the Swiss 3R Competence Center, organizes a webinar series about the replacement of basement membrane extracts (BME) aimed at researchers, regulators funding organisation and publishers. The first session of this series will take place on 21 October 12:30 CST.
Registration is now open for the 9th episode of the RepRefRed Online Seminar Series on October 19! The topic of our upcoming talk is "A Challenging Way to Animal Free Cell Culture" and will be presented by Claudia Bernecker and Beate Rinner from the Medical University of Graz. We warmly invite you to participate!
The RepRefRed Society invites, in cooperation with the VGT (Verein gegen Tierfabriken) and under moderation of Gerlinde Pösler (Falter), to a panel discussion on animal experiments on October 21. In particular, critical arguments about animal experiments will be examined objectively, and the current implementation of the 3Rs in Austria will be discussed. Venue: Skydome, Schottenfeldgasse 29 1070 Vienna. Free admission (limited number of participants)!
The Austrian Society for Cytometry (OEGfZ) together with the Division of Biomedical Research, cofunded by the RepRefRed Society, organizes the Cell Culture Days 2021 online/at the Medical University of Graz/Austria.
The 2 day program presents lectures and workshops in the field of cell culture, covering 3D Cell, quality control in cell culture, immortalisation, physiological culture conditions (hypoxia, air-liquid interface, etc.), bioreactors/dynamic culture systems incl. sensors (pH, O2, etc.), immune cells, organoids and clinical/translational applications as well as genome editing methods (CripsCas9).
Starting April 15th 2021 the European Society for Alternatives to Animal Testing EUSAAT will host a virtual seminar series about 3R relevant topics.
The Austrian Science Fond FWF, funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Research (BMBWF), is starting an annual research grant programme for innovative projects involving a contribution to the discovery and development of alternative methods.
The programme is funded by the BMBWF with a budget of 600.000€. The call opens on the 15th of March 2021, and ends on the 17th of May 2021. The award desicions can be expected in December 2021.
The RepRefRed Society joined EARA - European Animal Research Association in November 2020. We are looking forward to the cooperation!
National Consensus Platform for the advancement of "the 3 Rs" of Norway - collects events related to the 3Rs in its webinar and meeting calendar. Follow the links to future events as well as to the recordings of past presentations.
Reduction of the number of animals needed for research by passing on biological materials
As the animal experiment statistics 2019 of the Austrian Ministry of Science have shown, the number of animals used in animal experiments has increased compared to the previous year. Therefore, the development of alternative methods is now to be accelerated in order to reduce the number of animals. However, a reduction in the number of animals can also be achieved by a more efficient use of animals already used for research purposes. This is the goal of the group around Dr. Monika Wieser. The basic idea is that scientists share biological material with the research community.
Learn more about the Animal Model Biomaterial-Collection in the flyer or contact Dr. Monika Wieser directly.
The association "Tierschutz macht Schule" (Animal Protection in Schools) works for better living conditions for pets, farm animals, experimental and wild animals in our society. To this end, the critical examination of all aspects of animal protection, the avoidance of radical points of view and the willingness for further education and objective discussion is the basis of the work of "Tierschutz macht Schule".
The RepRefRed Society is happy to support this work and was able to contribute to the teaching booklet "Tierprofi-Versuchstiere" of the association "Tierschutz macht Schule" and to introduce itself briefly. In this teaching booklet the rat "Rita 3R" leads informatively through various aspects of animal experiments.
The booklet can be ordered free of charge, excluding postage, from the association "Tierschutz macht Schule".
Target groups: 7th-12th grade
www.tierschutzmachtschule.at under "Service"
Here you can find the text of the booklet.
We are proud to announce that the RepRefRed Society is now a member of ECOPA, the European Consensus-Platform on Alternatives. We are looking forward to working together and to projects in the field of 3Rs.
Following the decision on the first 3Rs Day, the Austrian university animal protection bodies will push forward the standardisation of animal experimentation education in Austria.
To this end, the European Union working paper will be implemented.
Biomodellen (The 3R Society)
Postfach 0014
A-8036 Graz