LibGuides: Alternatives to Animal Testing & Compliance Guide: Where to search

Databases

The Texas Medical Center Library has several resources that can be searched for relevant information. The following are just a sample of top databases that will be helpful for your research. Refer to the searchable keywords mentioned previously for more alternatives.

Embase

Gene Ontology

PubMed

Jove: Research protocols on various topics.

JOVE Biology
JOVE Immunology and Infection
JOVE Neuroscience
JOVE Medicine

EMBASE This link opens in a new window
EMBASE is a comprehensive index to peer-reviewed biomedical literature with international scope, covering 1947-present. EMBASE indexes more than 2,700 journals not covered by PubMed/Medline and includes about 300,000 conference abstracts annually from 2009 to the present. EMBASE combines its own ontology, EMTREE, with that of Medline, so that more of the relevant search results are retrieved in a search. EMBASE is an ideal resource for preparing systematic reviews and tracking drug and medical device information.
PubMed This link opens in a new window
PubMed is a database providing abstracts to articles in medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, allied health, and the pre-clinical sciences; it also indexes articles from the Index to Dental Literature and the International Nursing Index. PubMed is a service of the US National Library of Medicine and includes millions of citations from health and life sciences journals from the present back to the 1950s. PubMed, when accessed by registered Academic users via The TMC Library, links the user to the full text of thousands of articles in subscribed journals. For all who access it, PubMed also links to thousands of open-access articles, either directly via publisher sites or via its PubMed Central repository.
Agricultural & Environmental Science Database This link opens in a new window
Covers agricultural economics, animal and veterinary sciences, aquaculture and fisheries,; farming and farming systems, food and human nutrition, forestry and plant sciences. Multiple content types included.
Web of Science This link opens in a new window
The Web of Science is a database on the Web of Knowledge platform that integrates multiple citation indexes. All cited references for all publications are fully indexed and searchable. Search across all authors and all author affiliations. Track citation activity with Citation Alerts.

Useful Websites

Websites

ALTBIB - Resources and bibliography for alternatives to the use of live vertebrates in Biomedical Research and Testing

ALTWEB - From Johns Hopkins University, information on animal testing from around the world.

AWIC - The Animal Welfare Information Center provides resources on research, testing, teaching, and animal care.

CAAT - The Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing at Johns Hopkins University. Provides global resources & alternatives.

IACUC Central - IACUC Central is a resource for institutional animal care and use committee members and staff

ILAR - Institute for Laboratory Animal Research provides information on the ethical use of animal testing and alternatives.

Mouse Biology Program (MBP) - From UC Davis, provides resource on transgenic and targeted mutation research

NIEHS - National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences provides information for researches and scientists

Searches, Samples, and More!

Sample Search Strategy

The USDA and AWIC provide a sample search for Osteomyelitis here: Osteomyelitis Sample Search

Sample Search Hedges for Alternatives to Animals:

Hedges can be added (copied and pasted) into databases like PubMed as a concept to search in addition, to your main topic. These hedges are not cohesive with all studies. Choose your alternative search terms that are relevant to your main topic.

("housing, animal"[MeSH Terms] OR ("housing"[All Fields] AND "animal"[All Fields]) OR "animal housing"[All Fields] OR ("animal"[All Fields] AND "housing"[All Fields])) AND ("Stress"[Journal] OR "stress"[All Fields]) AND reduction[All Fields]

(((((“Models, Theoretical”[Mesh] NOT “Disease Models, Animal”[Mesh]))) OR (“Computer Simulation”[Mesh] OR “Cadaver”[Mesh] OR “Culture Techniques”[Mesh] OR “Cells, Cultured”[Mesh] OR "In Vitro Techniques"[Mesh]))) NOT (("Animals"[Mesh] OR "Humans"[Mesh]))

("Animal Testing Alternatives"[Mesh] OR ("In Vitro Techniques"[Mesh] OR "Computer Simulation"[Mesh])) OR ("Tissue Culture Techniques"[Mesh] AND "Diffusion Chambers, Culture"[Mesh])

((((("Pain"[Mesh]) OR "Animal Welfare"[Mesh]) OR "Stress, Physiological"[Mesh]) OR "Animal Use Alternatives"[Mesh])) AND (((((pain*[Title/Abstract]) OR stress*[Title/Abstract]) OR distress*[Title/Abstract]) OR welfare[Title/Abstract]) OR condition*[Title/Abstract])

("mice"[MeSH Terms] OR "mice"[All Fields]) AND ("mice"[MeSH Terms] OR "mice"[All Fields] OR "mouse"[All Fields]) AND ("pain"[MeSH Terms] OR "pain"[All Fields]) AND distress[All Fields] AND reduction[All Fields] AND alternative[All Fields]

Research Protocol Samples:

Alternatives to Animals

Alternative methods should incorporate aspects of reduction, refinement, or replacement of animal use in pursuit of the reduction of the number of animals used and avoiding needless duplication to accomplish the objectives of the research.

Investigators are required to search for alternatives to the use of animals with an emphasis on: Reduction (minimize the number of animals used through statistical design, pilot studies, or tissue sharing), Refinement (modifying techniques to minimize the pain and distress associated with techniques like prolonged restraint, death as an endpoint, tumor induction, tissue or blood collection, and toxicity studies), and Replacement (use of non-animal models such as simulators, computer models, or tissue culture to replace models or techniques that use live animals).

In addition to the search, describe the results of the search with respect to the availability of options to replace live animals or reduce the number of animals used, and describe if the results found could or could not be can be utilized to accomplish the goals of the research.

Example related to an alternative to using a live animal:

Multiple models of ovarian tumor studies were found in multiple species. A high-throughput 3-dimensional culture as a pre-clinical model of disease as described by Mendiola, et al. will be used to reduce the number of animals in one arm of this study. By utilizing a non-animal model, the number of mice to generate ovarian tumors to predict preclinical disease has been reduced.

Alternatives to Painful or Distressful Procedures

Alternative methods should also incorporate aspects of reduction, refinement, or replacement of animal use in pursuit of the minimization of pain and distress consistent with the objectives of the research.

The Animal Welfare Act Regulations and USDA/APHIS Policy #12 require the PI to consider alternatives to procedures that may cause more than momentary or slight pain or distress to the animals, and provide IACUC with a written narrative of the methods that may result in reduced pain or distress for the animals.

Investigators are required to search for alternatives to procedures that may cause more than momentary or slight pain and distress to the animal. Provide a written description to the IACUC to ensure that a reasonable and good faith effort has been made to determine the availability of alternatives and options for painful and distressful procedures. With the search, describe the results of the search with respect to the availability of options to substitute painful or distressful procedures with less painful procedures in the animals used and describe if the results found could or could not be utilized to accomplish the goals of the research.

Example related to an alternative to metabolic caging to reduce stress:

We will not use the traditional metabolic cages for urine collection. Instead we will use the method of Watts as modified by Kurien et al. By utilizing spot urine collection techniques, the use of metabolic cages for urine collection has been avoided. This refinement lessens the stress on the animal that may accompany being temporarily singly-housed in the metabolic cage.

Example related to an alternative found that could not be utilized:

Kamala T (2007) J Immunol Methods 328: 204-214 describes an alternative method to potentially painful footpad injections that involves injection of the hock as an alternative. This alternative can’t be used because the skin character of the footpad more closely mimics human skin, which is an important feature of the model proposed.

Information from this section provided by:

Vance P. Hobbs, BS, MBA
Director, IACUC & IBC
Office of Research
Baylor College of Medicine

IACUC Red Flags

Searching just one database!

"Alternative" as a keyword searched just by itself.

Subject Headings, keywords, terminology, and concepts linked incorrectly in searches.

Including keywords that are not relevant to the protocol.

Inadequate time period searched (Less than 5 years).

Searches completed at the last minute.

Some Valuable Resources

Critical Care Management for Laboratory Mice and Rats by F. Claire Hankenson
ISBN: 9780849324994
Publication Date: 2013-10-03
For critical care of laboratory rodents, there is a scarcity of sources for comprehensive, feasible, and response-oriented information on clinical interventions specific to spontaneous and induced models of disease. With the more complex cases that need critical care management, many treatment approaches to veterinary emergencies cannot be applied directly to the laboratory rodent. The first text of its kind devoted to the challenges of critical care management for laboratory rodents, Critical Care Management for Laboratory Mice and Rats provides a specialized resource for all veterinary, husbandry, technical, and research professionals who utilize rodent models for biomedical research. The book covers the varied approaches to laboratory rodent patient care, health assessments, characteristics of specific disease models, monitoring and scoring of disease parameters, and humane interventions. Giving primary consideration to preservation of animal health and welfare, the text also considers how best to balance welfare with the achievement of proposed scientific objectives. Organized into five chapters, this full-color book covers the following topics: General Approaches for Critical Care Critical Care Management for Laboratory Mice Critical Care Management for Laboratory Rats Special Considerations for Critical Care Management in Laboratory Rodents Resources and Additional Information The author provides treatment guidelines with the expectation that they will be applied with apt professional judgment, allowing for further modification of clinical recommendations for improved patient-based care and welfare for research animals.
Advances in Animal Alternatives for Safety and Efficacy Testing by Harry Salem (Editor)
ISBN: 9780429132988
Publication Date: 1997-11-12
Presents up-to-date concepts and approaches to the theory and practice of alternatives to animal testing and promotes technology transfer. The text addresses some of the ramifications of the National Institutes of Health Revitalization Act of 1993 which instructs the NIH to fund replacement, reduction and refinement alternatives. It also describes
Handbook of Laboratory Animal Anesthesia and Pain Management by Cholawat Pacharinsak (Editor); Jennifer C. Smith (Editor)
Call Number: Electronic Book (Taylor & Francis)
ISBN: 9781315380575
Publication Date: 2017-03-27
Key features: Presents practical information in easily accessible 'bullet point' format Covers anesthetic machine and related equipment, anesthetic management and monitoring, anesthesia and analgesia pharmacology, euthanasia, and record keeping Written by well-recognized experts in the laboratory animal community Provides extensive references to direct the reader to sources for further study of alternative techniques and their procedures Concludes with a thorough chapter on Regulatory Management of Rodent Anesthesia which has global application Rodents are the most commonly used species in biomedical research. Individuals conducting rodent research are often responsible to ensure that all areas of anesthesia and analgesia are performed humanely. Anesthetic agent selection, anesthetic monitoring, and postoperative pain assessment and management are essential to the institutional animal care and use program and contribute significantly to the 3Rs by reducing pain and/or distress and refining various procedures. The Handbook of Laboratory Animal Anesthesia and Pain Management: Rodents is the first book to capture multiple advances in this important area that greatly impacts various experimental methodologies. Richly illustrated in full color, the book serves as a quick reference source for investigators, veterinarians, technicians, and other animal caretakers charged with the care and use of rodents in a research setting. The unique format of this book also makes it extremely valuable to IACUC members, institutional officials, and occupational health and safety professionals.

COMFORTABLE QUARTERS FOR LABORATORY ANIMALS
Guide for laboratory animal care personnel on the humane housing and handling of individual animal species in research facilities; edited by Cathy Liss, Kenneth Litwak, Dave Tilford & Viktor Reinhardt; 2015; 10th edition; 239 pages.