Replacement  

Overview

The term Replacement refers to all methods which avoid or replace animal use in preclinical research. Particularly in this principle of the 3Rs, great progress has been made in recent years, sometimes supported by other scientific developments such as CRISPR-Cas9, Next-Generation-Sequencing and modern 3D-printing.

Promising techniques such as organs-on-a-chip, in silico models, i.e. the computer-aided modeling of biological processes, as well as 3D cell cultures thus received not only scientific recognition but also broad media interest. These methods are commonly displayed to represent the majority of available replacement methods, although they represent only a sub-area.

Replacement can be further divided into:

• Absolute Replacement: Means that the use of animals is completely replaced by a substitute method. Examples include in vitro methods such as animal-free cell cultures, organoids and organs-on-a-chip, and in silico methods, for example for the development of advanced pharmacological agents.

• Partial Replacement: involves the use of invertebrates that, according to current scientific knowledge, have no or only limited pain sensation, such as Drosophila melanogaster - a fruit fly - , immature forms or early forms (e.g. embryos of mammals, birds and reptiles) or bacteria.

• Relative Replacement: involves the use of animals solely to obtain cells, tissues or organs that are subsequently required for in vitro methods.

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