“Americans are living longer, healthier lives and we owe much of that success to biomedical research,” said Robert Palazzo, Ph.D
Below is just a small selection of the major medical breakthrough made possible by animal research. These treatment have been used to save or improve the lives of many millions of people worldwide.
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- Penicillin
- The animal experiment
Only by 1940 was enough penicillin available for testing. Eight mice were infected with a deadly dose of 110 million streptococci bacteria. One hour later, four of them were injected with penicillin. These survived but the untreated ones died. Florey said, “It looks like a miracle”. - What’s it done for humans?
It revolutionized the ability to treat bacterial infections, which were a major cause of death. This simple animal test led directly to the saving of literally millions of lives, both human and animal.
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- Blood transfusion
- The animal experiment
In 1915 Richard Lewisohn determined the maximum safe concentration of citrate that could be used when transfusing blood into a dog. The following year two doctors, Peyton Rous and Joseph Turner at the Rockefeller Institute, New York showed that blood treated with citrate and glucose could be stored for as long as three weeks in rabbits and safely transfused back into the animals. Later work established longer storage times for human blood. - What’s it done for humans?
Blood transfusion is used after injury and surgery and to treat cancers and anaemia. Open heart surgery would not be possible without it.
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- Tuberculosis
- The animal experiment
In 1943, Selman Waksman and Albert Schatz, soil microbiologists working at Rutgers University, New Jersey, injected streptomycin, the product of a soil bacteria isolated in a sick chicken, into guinea pigs infected with TB. It completely suppressed the TB without harming the guinea pigs. - What’s it done for humans?
This was the first effective treatment for TB, both human and animal. It saved millions of lives.
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- Kidney transplants
- The animal experiment
Surgical techniques for transplantation were perfected in dogs and pigs in the 1950s and became routine in humans.Cyclosporine, which is extracted from a species of fungus, was discovered in 1972 and found to be a potent immune suppressor in mice. Tests in humans found that it prolonged the survival of grafted kidneys. Research on transplants in dogs showed that combining cyclosporine with steroid produces a three-fold increase in survival time. - What’s it done for humans?
About 2,000 kidney patients each year benefit from kidney transplants and more would do so if more organs were available.
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- Breast cancer
- The animal experiment
Animal studies in the 1950s showed that hormone changes can induce breast tumors in rats. This led to the development of Tamoxifen which blocks the growth of hormone dependent breast cancers. Further research with mice showed its possible preventive role. - What’s it done for humans?
Breast cancer is now the second most survivable female cancer, with a 77% five-year survival rate. Following tamoxifen’s introduction in the 90s, there was a 30% fall in death rates. It has now been proved that tamoxifen can also prevent breast cancer in high-risk women.
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- Parkinson’s Disease
- The animal experiment
Experimental surgery in monkeys identified the subthalamic nucleus as a target for treatment of Parkinson’s. Subsequently Parkinson’s was induced in macaque monkeys and then controlled by means of an electrode to the subthalamic nucleus, the brain centre responsible for the disease. Prof. Tipu Aziz of Oxford University applied the same techniques to his human patients, fitting an electrode to their subthalamic nucleus, and switching off their tremor. - What’s it done for humans?
This technique has brought great benefits to 200,000 people with Parkinson’s.
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- Insulin
- The animal experiment
In 1889, Josef von Mering and Oskar Minkowksi showed that removing the pancreas from a dog produced diabetes. Insulin, however, proved difficult to isolate. In a series of classic experiments, during the summer of 1921, Canadian doctor Frederick Banting, along with student Charles Best, managed to extract insulin. They injected their extract into a diabetic dog, close to death, restoring it to health. But their extract caused high fever in patients. Biochemist James Collip then developed a purification method but the only way to check whether insulin was present and in what amount, was to measure its ability to lower blood sugar in rabbits. Since insulin overdose is fatal, this was essential. These extracts were first used in dogs, then in patients in 1922. Banting and his supervisor, Professor John Macleod, won the Nobel prize in 1923. - What’s it done for humans?
The development of insulin provided the first treatment for what had been a lethal disease. It is not a cure, but it has kept millions alive since its discovery.