There are times when applying the principles of the 3Rs (reduce, refine and replace) can lead to challenging problems for an IACUC. Drs. Sly Harding and Joan Benoit were both endocrinologists at Great Eastern University. Both carried out ovariectomies on rabbits as part of their research. Harding studied the impact of estrogen on certain behaviors, which were not considered by the IACUC to cause any pain or distress to the animals. Benoit studied the effects of various hormones, including estrogen, on the healing of induced bone fractures. The IACUC had always considered that Benoit's work consisted of two major operative procedures on the same animal and that appropriate scientific justification to do this had been provided by Benoit.
During a lunchtime conversation, Harding and Benoit realized that the ovariectomized rabbits that were used in Harding's research could subsequently be used in Benoit's research after Harding's study ended. This would negate the need for Benoit to purchase and ovariectomize rabbits before inducing bone fractures. Benoit submitted a protocol amendment to the IACUC in which she explained that using Harding's rabbits in her studies would reduce the total number of rabbits purchased yet would still expose a single rabbit to the same number of major operative procedures that had been justified and approved in her protocol. She considered this a win-win situation for herself and for the IACUC. Nevertheless, the IACUC had a difficult time deciding how to approach this request. There were two unrelated protocols, both of which required ovariectomized rabbits. Approving Benoit's amendment would obviously result in fewer animals being purchased, but Benoit was more interested in saving money than animals. Furthermore, although the scientific justification for multiple survival operative procedures was already approved for Benoit's protocol, use of animals from an unrelated protocol was not approved.
Do you think the IACUC should approve Benoit's amendment? Is approval from the USDA Animal Care division required?
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Silverman, J. Multiple survival surgeries; multiple studies. Lab Anim 42, 161 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban.277
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/laban.277
