There is a motivational quote that says something like ‘You can’t change the direction of your wind, but you can change your sails’. As a small charity, with clear goals, we are lucky in that it is not too onerous for us to change ‘tack’ or adjust our direction if there is an opportunity to further our mission to work towards a world where no animal suffers for science. In recent weeks, I have been reflecting on how Replacement training has become a higher priority in recent years and how this has allowed the charity to shift strategy.

The 3Rs – a means to an end

Good experimental design is needed in all scientific research, and children learn about the process of scientific enquiry and using different methods to answer questions from an early age. When using animals or humans in an experiment, there are more ethical considerations. The 3Rs principles were first set out in 1959 as an ethical framework for experimental design when using animals in research.

The 3Rs were then written into animal research legislation, and because of this, we refer to them regularly in our work with scientists and policymakers. The first of the 3Rs principles is ‘Replacement’, and the requirement for scientists to replace the use of animals with non-animal alternatives wherever scientifically possible. Replacement is obviously our bag…. All our training and resources today focus solely on this.

Historically, however, our charity has put time and energy into the other Rs alongside this. ‘Reduction’ is the 3Rs requirement for scientists to reduce the number of animals used in any project to the minimum needed to achieve the aim of the experiment. FRAME or Fund for the Replacement of Animals in Medical Experiments, as we were then known, would talk to animal researchers about replacement and how to find alternatives, but also provide training to help reduce animal use through better experimental design and reduce suffering through the third R of ‘refinement’ if animals were used. Avoiding animal use and advocating for humane alternatives was always the aim first and foremost, but our original governing document from 1969 includes ‘GIVE ALL POSSIBLE ENCOURAGEMENT, ADVICE, INFORMATION AND ASSISTANCE TO THOSE ENGAGED IN THE FIELD OF MEDICAL BIOLOGICAL PHARMACEUTICAL AND ASSOCIATED RESEARCHES INVOLVING EXPERIMENTS ON ANIMALS SO AS TO AVOID UNINTENTIONAL CRUELTY AND UNNECESSARY SUFFERING’

Indeed, the reduction work was seen as so important and lacking at the time that in the 1990s FRAME set up a committee specifically to address this.

‘Established in 1998, the FRAME Reduction Committee (FRC) (now the FRAME Reduction Steering Committee [FRSC]) has continued to pursue its aim of reducing the number of animals used in bio-medical science. Through its expertise in statistics, experimental design, animal welfare and research on alternatives, it has contributed to raising awareness of the need for reduction and the means of achieving and demonstrating it.

This work was popular as there was little access to 3Rs-related training, whereas today this is much more readily available. At the time, by supporting scientists with all of the 3Rs, FRAME was able to get in front of scientists and talk about Replacement as part of this. Replacement has always been the top priority and at the heart of our mission.

What changed?

In the past decade, the correct implementation of the 3Rs has become a higher priority within animal research and for the regulatory bodies here in the UK and across the EU. There are more initiatives pushing the 3Rs, and access to 3Rs advice and training has increased, and there are now many 3Rs centres around the world supporting and funding researchers.

Here in the UK, this exists in the form of the Government-funded National Centre for 3Rs (NC3Rs). With a wider recognition today that replacement, as part of the 3Rs, is not being implemented well, combined with a government-level push to phase out animal experiments, the value of replacement-specific training is more evident and in demand.

Replacement is no longer seen as a tick-box exercise element of the 3Rs, but as a valid training need in its own right. This is evident from the invites Replacing Animal Research is getting to speak, support, and provide replacement training to the animal research community.

Also, like many charities, the staff, structure and trustees have changed over time, along with our capacity and skillset. Today, we are a small, dedicated team building on the influential and respected progress made by FRAME historically. We are focused on the opportunities and gaps that exist today to help drive impactful change and move us towards a world where animals are no longer used in science.

Our work is not done

Whilst we are pleased with this evolution, it unfortunately reflects the acknowledgement that researchers and those reviewing research proposals are not always clear on how to thoroughly explore alternative non-animal approaches to replace animals. It often requires thinking differently and utilising multiple skills, but luckily, we have some tips and tools to help, like the Replacement Checklist, and we are sharing them widely with the research community.

But our ambitions don’t stop there. We will continue to not just call for replacement to be done better but also push for a stronger replacement commitment and ethos to be embedded in law and research culture. We would like to see all animal species offered the same protections under the 3Rs principles, with full replacement always the top priority – something that is slightly misleading currently when using fruit flies or worms instead of mice is classed as ‘replacement’. Whilst the mice are being replaced, animals are still being used.

It might be challenging to achieve full replacement of animals in some areas of research and testing, particularly veterinary or conservation-related, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be the ultimate aim.  As species-relevant research and testing methods continue to evolve, one day we will hopefully get there. In the meantime, we will keep striving for better.