[CORRECTION: Updated links to CCAC letter. Letter can also be downloaded at www.ubc.ca/news ]
In a letter sent Thursday, March 15, to the activist group Stop UBC Animal Research, the Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC) finds no evidence to support allegations of animal cruelty made against a University of British Columbia research team.
On February 22nd 2012, Stop UBC Animal Research wrote the national body responsible for the oversight of animals in Canadian research institutions, the CCAC. The group demanded an investigation into the 2007 deaths of four macaque monkeys during the course of a research project on Parkinson’s disease.
In the letter, copied to UBC Vice President Research and International John Hepburn and other interested parties, CCAC Executive Director Clément Gauthier summarizes the organization’s investigation into the deaths of the animals and their findings. ( http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/CCAC-Inquiry-Report-15March12-letter-to-STOP.pdf )
Gauthier states in the letter: “Our inquiry revealed no evidence to support the allegations: The study was conducted in a CCAC-certified institution, according to an approved research protocol, and within CCAC standards in place in 2007.”
The study involving macaque monkeys was conducted from 2000 and 2009, and involved the injection of a drug to induce Parkinson’s-like symptoms in order to establish the best way to test promising treatments against the disease.
Gauthier concludes by writing: “CCAC certification indicates that the animal care and use program at the institution is in compliance with CCAC policies, guidelines, and other relevant standards.”
UBC Vice President of Research and International John Hepburn stated: “The CCAC vindicates the careful, humane and ethical way our researchers treat the animals in their care.” He added: “Scientists at UBC take their responsibilities extremely seriously. We fully appreciate that animal research is a public trust, not a right.”
To see the CCAC letter: http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/CCAC-Inquiry-Report-15March12-letter-to-STOP.pdf
For information about the CCAC: www.ccac.ca
For information about UBC animal research: www.animalresearch.ubc.ca
Related topics: research
