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<title>Words matter</title>
<link>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/15/words-matter/</link>
<comments>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/15/words-matter/#comments</comments>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Editor2]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Thu, 15 Sep 2022 13:57:54 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal rights]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal rights extremism]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal testing]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal welfare]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[anti-animal research]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[human rights]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Language]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Sangy Panicker]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">http://speakingofresearch.com/?p=22200</guid>
<description><![CDATA[September 15, 2022  Sangy Panicker Just as starting assumptions matter, words matter. Why? Because language shapes discourse, dialogue, understanding, and opinion. Hence, accurate terms and terminology are critical. And what does this mean in the context of animal research? It means dropping tired old labels and phrases in favor of more apt ones.  Continuing to … <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/15/words-matter/" class="more-link">Continue reading Words matter</a>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
September 15, 2022 
Sangy Panicker
Just as <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2021/04/02/evergreen-fair-partners-in-dialogue-starting-assumptions-matter-and-they-should-be-spelled-out/">starting assumptions matter</a>, words matter. Why? Because language shapes discourse, dialogue, understanding, and opinion. Hence, accurate terms and terminology are critical. And what does this mean in the context of animal research? It means dropping tired old labels and phrases in favor of more apt ones. 
<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/1J0uKSrukZ7cZh4V1rcX5qPhEeWqloKc2Y9aPXOa_G2rXEHve0PYvjKykyrpNQOZlg_nswz4jyaNZMKXQFwHMHEWUf0zbflExzLp2WfbIxl0wqOQ-4-kPNhEME5IgQ8cv8OHHprZUpyTByPiC5E2w1ZaVu2dnjwFqj_s3waadtdMOH1nQwx_4rG58A" alt="" /></figure>
Continuing to use the term “animal rights” is linked to perpetuating the misperception that scientists/researchers are not concerned with or do not care about animal welfare — that only individuals and entities who subscribe to the notion of animal rights are concerned about and are sole authority on animal welfare. First and foremost, “animal rights” is, to some extent, a nonsensical term because it is a misappropriation of the human construct of “<a href="https://www.ohchr.org/en/what-are-human-rights/international-bill-human-rights">human rights</a>.” With rights come responsibilities, and unlike humans, other animals have no similar responsibilities. Thus, we humans, given our unique capacities within the animal kingdom, have the responsibility to strive to ensure the wellbeing of other animals–those under our care (pets, research animals, zoos) as well as those in nature.
So when we talk about animal rights groups and animal rights activists/extremists in the context of animal research, what we really mean are organizations and individuals who are opposed to animal research. These are people who profess either that no larger societal good has (or ever will) accrue from animal research or that even if there are societal and environmental benefits that might result from such research, it is inherently unethical and should therefore be abolished. In short, such individuals and groups are opposed to any and all animal research, period.
In the interest of accuracy, transparency, and thwarting intentional or unintentional misperceptions, then, let’s refer to such groups and individuals as anti-animal research organizations or entities.
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<title>Scientists reject PETA’s blithe disregard for human rights</title>
<link>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/07/scientists-reject-petas-blithe-disregard-for-human-rights/</link>
<comments>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/07/scientists-reject-petas-blithe-disregard-for-human-rights/#comments</comments>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Editor]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 07 Sep 2022 13:50:52 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal research]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal rights]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal testing]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Declaration of Helsinki]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Ethics]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[human rights]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Nuremberg Code]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[peta]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[racism]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[sexism]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Speciesism]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">http://speakingofresearch.com/?p=20812</guid>
<description><![CDATA[September 7th 2022 Scientists, educators, and students are returning to school this month. Across university campuses, researchers welcome the next generation of scientists as they continue studies to advance knowledge and contribute to society by delivering new understanding of the universe. For some scientists and educators this means research to understand health and disease, with … <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/07/scientists-reject-petas-blithe-disregard-for-human-rights/" class="more-link">Continue reading Scientists reject PETA’s blithe disregard for human rights</a>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
September 7th 2022
Scientists, educators, and students are returning to school this month. Across university campuses, researchers welcome the next generation of scientists as they continue studies to advance knowledge and contribute to society by delivering new understanding of the universe. For some scientists and educators this means research to understand health and disease, with the goal of improving human and animal quality of life and confronting global challenges that affect us all. As the worldwide rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines have shown, having fast progress in the face of a worldwide health crisis depends on many decades of basic and applied science by many people in many laboratories across the world (<a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2021/08/27/human-mrna-vaccine-trials-in-the-2010s-a-history-lesson-in-animal-research/">see here</a>, for example). It also depends on studies with nonhuman animals. That is unlikely to change. And for that reason, scientists and educators prioritize teaching and training students—the next generation.
It is perhaps unsurprising that those opposed to animal research, regardless of the consequences for society, humans, other animals, and the environment also see the beginning of the school year as a moment to influence the future. Thus, for example, we see PETA predictably seizing the moment to host protests and recruitment events across college campuses. PETA is an absolutist group opposed to all use of animals by humans. They advertise an extreme belief that humans and other animals are the same. A fly is the same as a mouse. A mouse is the same as a dog, cat, monkey, human child or any human. PETA advertises that sexism, racism, anti-semitism, and all other forms of discrimination against humans are the same as treating other animals differentlly than humans. PETA equates drinking milk, eating cheese or hamburgers, and benefiting from animal research by taking a vaccine with enslavement of humans, rape of human women, and the Nazi holocaust.6-10 Scientists reject this false equivalence.
At Speaking of Research we encourage serious, deliberate, and fact-informed consideration of animal research, beginning with foundational ethical <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2013/06/12/fair-partners-in-dialogue-starting-assumptions-matter-and-they-should-be-spelled-out/">principles</a>. We also stand opposed to conflating nonhuman animals with humans. This does not mean nonhuman animals’ well-being and care are ignored. In fact, nonhuman animal care is valued, integral, and enforced through our framework for ethical research and the standards, laws, and oversight governing animal care and use. We believe that equating speciesism with other forms of social injustice is harmful to individuals who are impacted by systemic, structural, and individual discrimination, hate, and violence. That statement and its signatories is below. We encourage you to:
<ol>
<li>Read and think about whether you agree. If so, please sign on in the comments section.</li>
<li>Consider how you can talk with others about why the concept of speciesism, when it is equated with racism, sexism, and other forms of discrimination among human groups, is deeply problematic and antithetical to human rightssocial justice.</li>
<li>Share with others. It is often tempting to believe that PETA and campaigns like SOS are trivial. They do, however, provide an opportunity for serious dialogue and teaching about how global society navigates ethical decision-making and how it is that we – as a society– address global problems. The COVID vaccines, for example, did not arise from nothing. It depended upon research with nonhuman animals and also on accepting that human and nonhuman animals are not the same. </li>
</ol>
Originally<a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2021/11/19/speaking-of-research-invites-you-to-sign-onto-our-statement-on-human-rights-and-speciesism/"> posted</a> November 19th 2021
SPEAKING OF RESEARCH STATEMENT ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND SPECIESISM
The recent past has brought increasing attention to injustice and violation of human rights. Those include racism, sexism, and other forms of prejudice and discrimination based on misguided and exploitative notions of human hierarchies. Globally, basic human rights are recognized as an essential and core moral value that applies to every person. They are enshrined in, and ensured through, worldwide and national declarations, adoption of conventions, and passing of national laws. Further, the priority of human rights is recognized in international ethical codes that apply to medical and scientific research, including the Nuremberg Code1 and Declaration of Helsinki.2
Some individuals and groups opposed to the use of nonhuman animals by humans have seized this moment to amplify their own position. Under the banner of “speciesism” they argue for equivalence of humans and other animals in terms of moral consideration and rights. In turn, they argue that “speciesism” is equivalent to racism, sexism, anti-Semitism, and other forms of prejudice that have led to horrific violations of human rights and to violence, bias, and discrimination against people and communities.3-10 The  language and concepts surrounding campaigns against speciesism are often adopted from efforts centered on ensuring human rights (e.g., “human supremacy” in parallel to “White supremacy”). Referring to a fundamental principle in human research ethics, these entities use the phrase (or slogan) “without their consent” to argue against human activities ranging from production of dairy milk to conducting medical and scientific research.5
Photo credit: <a href="https://www.end-of-speciesism.org/en/">https://www.end-of-speciesism.org/en</a><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/S3PhI01oNp2d1WrZu7LMAgdtQBs9OMdMsL5tcA0lhoKIOAbJCrYtapLPr_Mf0lCtmHJsX11cET8jyDw2Y-WyGA2WpRlFuBfFIJw2qts_x2v4K4u0l6S48ZGXqoi7oDsN7FnDzmo" width="720" height="127">
Unfortunately, the speciesism perspective is often advanced without consideration of its impact on people and communities affected by systemic, structural, and individual discrimination, hate, and violence. To equate agricultural chickens with people murdered in the Holocaust,6 dairy cows with the rape of human women,7 and whales in aquariums or animals in agriculture with human enslavement8,9,10 is deeply harmful (see representative images and videos in the references below). Not only does it trivialize serious societal ills that continue to afflict communities, it perpetuates a false equivalency. Both are detrimental to the wellbeing of human and other animals. Such actions are also in fundamental conflict with a culture that takes seriously its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion of all people. And, as such, it requires that the community committed to ensuring human rights and inclusion not only seriously consider the harm inherent in this approach, but also speak out to strongly denounce such rhetoric and imagery.
We urge members of the research community to sign below (in the comments) to support the statement. Please also consider sharing with others in your community. 
Jeremy Bailoo, PhD Allyson Bennett, PhD Sangy Panicker, PhD Nancy Dess, PhD Amanda Dettmer, PhD Doris Doudet, PhD Juan Dominguez, PhD Kevin Freeman, PhD Reggie Gazes, PhD Agnes Lacreuse, PhD Christopher Petkov, PhD James Rowlett, PhD Tania Roth, PhD Juan Carlos Marvizon, PhD Marcello Rosa, PhD Justin Varholick, PhD Renée Hartig, PhD John Dennis Paula Clifford, MLA, RLATG, CVT Breanna N. Harris, PhD Luis Rivera James A Carr, PhD Katherine West, MS Kirby Deater-Deckard Rose Szabady Christopher Harshaw, PhD Christine Prater, PhD Rebecca Ready Christopher Del Negro Joshua Willms, MD/PhD Candidate Troy Hallman Dennis Eckmeier Elisa A. Hurley, PhD Gerald Downes Sarah Pallas Xiaobo Liu, PhD Candidate Olga Ponomareva, PhD Mariana Pereira Robyn Durand Jim Newman Peter J. Pierre, PhD Carlos De Cabo De A Vega Elspeth McLachlan Karine Fenelon Paul Katz Elena Vazey Carol Shively, PhD Kevin Elliott Yannis Dalezios Heather N Richardson Joe Bergman John Capitanio, PhD Julia Chester, PhD Kari Hoffman Ken Gordon Jennifer Klahn Michael Oberdorfer, PhD Richard Carson George F Michel, PhD Federico Sanabria, PhD J Bruce Overmier, PhD Stephanie Groman Chris Medina Janet D. Stemwedel, PhD Eliza Bliss-Moreau, PhD Sally Huskinson, PhD Alexander Baxter Christine Lattin, PhD Dave Clark Karen Bales, PhD Igor Ponomarev, PhD Dan Haisenleder, PhD Amrika Deonarine, PhD Pablo Artigas, PhD Rob Macleod, PhD Jean Laurens, PhD Mark Krause, PhD David Jentsch, PhD Donna Clemons, DVM, MS, DCLAM Lauren Highfill, PhD Amy Arnsten, PhD Pamela Hunt, PhD Karen Hollis, PhD Will Whitham, PhD Rob Blesh Taylor Bennett, DVM, PhD Wendy Lynch, PhD Michael Beran, PhD Jonathon Crystal, PhD Aaron Blaisdell, PhD
References
1Trials of War Criminals before the Nuremberg Military Tribunals under Control Council Law. No. 10″, Vol. 2, pp. 181-182. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1949
2World Medical Association. (‎2001)‎. World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki. Ethical principles for medical research involving human subjects.. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 79 (‎4)‎, 373 – 374. World Health Organization.<a href="https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/268312"> https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/268312</a>
3End of Speciecism (retrieved 11/4/2021). <a href="https://www.end-of-speciesism.org/en/">https://www.end-of-speciesism.org/en/</a>
4PETA (retrieved 11/4/2021). Students launch nationwide push to end human supremacy. <a href="https://www.peta.org/media/news-releases/photos-students-launch-nationwide-push-to-end-human-supremacy/">https://www.peta.org/media/news-releases/photos-students-launch-nationwide-push-to-end-human-supremacy/</a>
5PETA (retreived 11/4/2021). Without consent. <a href="https://withoutconsent.peta.org/">https://withoutconsent.peta.org/</a>
6CNN (2003). Group blasts PETA ‘Holocaust’ project: The Anti-Defamation League has denounced a campaign by an animal rights group that compares slaughtering animals to the murder of 6 million Jews in World War II. <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/Northeast/02/28/peta.holocaust/?s_campaign=arguable:newsletter">http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/Northeast/02/28/peta.holocaust/?s_campaign=arguable:newsletter</a>
7 PETA (2016). Women Explain What Rape Feels Like for Animals in the Food Industry. Youtube.
8Zelman, J. (2012). PETA’s SeaWorld Slavery Case Dismissed By Judge. Huffington Post. <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/peta-seaworld-slavery-_n_1265014">https://www.huffpost.com/entry/peta-seaworld-slavery-_n_1265014</a>
9Mock, B. (2014). How not to celebrate MLK Day: PETA compares animal cruelty to slavery (again). Grist.<a href="https://grist.org/article/how-not-to-celebrate-mlk-day-peta-compares-animal-cruelty-to-slavery-again/">https://grist.org/article/how-not-to-celebrate-mlk-day-peta-compares-animal-cruelty-to-slavery-again/</a> 10PETA Kids (retrieved 11/4/2021). What Do Slavery and Animals in Captivity Have in Common? <a href="https://www.petakids.com/videos/slavery-captivity/">https://www.petakids.com/videos/slavery-captivity/</a>
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<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
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<item>
<title>#Evergreen: It’s Back to School Time – Time for Institutions to Step Up</title>
<link>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/06/evergreen-its-back-to-school-time-time-for-institutions-to-step-up/</link>
<comments>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/06/evergreen-its-back-to-school-time-time-for-institutions-to-step-up/#respond</comments>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Editor]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Sep 2022 18:57:38 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Evergreen Post Series]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[administration]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal research]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animaltesting]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[anti-animal research agenda]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[back to school]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Evergreen]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[moral responsibility]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[protest]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[university]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">http://speakingofresearch.com/?p=22173</guid>
<description><![CDATA[September 6, 2022 As students return to college campuses this month, many are eager to embark on new research opportunities, or to pick up where they left off last year. Likewise, their research mentors are eagerly anticipating the start of a new academic year. Much of this anticipation is rooted in training the next generation … <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/06/evergreen-its-back-to-school-time-time-for-institutions-to-step-up/" class="more-link">Continue reading #Evergreen: It’s Back to School Time – Time for Institutions to Step Up</a>]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[
September 6, 2022

As students return to college campuses this month, many are eager to embark on new research opportunities, or to pick up where they left off last year. Likewise, their research mentors are eagerly anticipating the start of a new academic year. Much of this anticipation is rooted in training the next generation of scientists.
Predictably, anti-animal research groups across the country are capitalizing on back-to-school as an opportunity to promote their extremist views in an effort to gain supporters. These groups, which oppose any use of animals by humans for any reason, are holding events at colleges and universities across the country this week and next. Research institutions must step up.
Back in 2017, we wrote about the obligation of research institutions to publicly support their animal research programs, and to defend the scientists involved against attacks that deliberately misrepresent scientists and their research. We detailed why it is imperative for institutions to speak up rather than leaving the bulk of the defense to individual scientists.
As this academic year gets underway, we underscore that call for institutional action. As we declared at the start of 2022, not only should institutions defend their researchers and animal research programs during such campaigns of misinformation, they should proactively commend their scientists for the invaluable research they conduct. We now specifically call on research institutions to also unequivocally ensure the safety of their scientists, staff, and students.
Openly acknowledging and lauding the research conducted by their faculty, allows institutions to shape the message to its community, effectively thwarting false messaging perpetrated by those fundamentally opposed to animal research. Furthermore, institutions must take proactive steps to ensure research spaces, offices, and classrooms are safe such intruders. Institutions must include scientists every step of the way when responding to attacks from anti-animal research groups. This means including them in discussions about drafting public responses, giving them the option of having a seat at the table when leadership meets with advocacy groups or the attackers themselves, and having explicit protocols in place for when attacks bleed over into scientists personal space — such as, what occurs when activists “doxx” individual researchers or organize protests in their neighborhoods.
As we see anti-animal research groups showing no signs of backing down from their unwarranted assaults, it is increasingly clear that effective, committed, and public support is required from those who have accepted the charge of providing the supportive environment and context for the research.

Research institutions have a moral responsibility to defend their research programs and scientists Originally <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2017/09/18/research-institutions-have-a-moral-responsibility-to-defend-their-research-programs-and-scientists/">posted</a> 9/18/2017
Every university, research institute, company, funder, and benefactor of scientific research that depends on animal studies:
<ol>
<li>plays a role in public communication about animal research;</li>
<li>has a responsibility for provision of responsive, accessible, and useful information about the work, its justification, conduct, oversight; and</li>
<li>has a moral obligation to defend its science and scientists against attacks that misrepresent them, their research, and the institution’s animal program broadly.</li>
</ol>
What we have seen and written about over the last decade at Speaking of Research includes nearly everything ranging from institutions-of-no-comment to institutions seriously engaged in proactive, responsive, and genuine public communication about their animal research programs.
What we have not seen is a sea-change in enthusiastic adoption of public engagement by a wide swath of institutions – not only in the US, but also in Asia and some other global regions with significant animal research interest. The reasons for that are neither simple nor mysterious. For one: it is not required, it is not expected, and it is not easy. Nor are its benefits always immediately realized.
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter" id="attachment_4812"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/evaluating-response-to-public-interest-in-animal-research-graphic-for-sr-post-02-18-13.png"><img data-attachment-id="4812" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2013/02/20/raising-the-bar-what-makes-an-effective-public-response-in-the-face-of-animal-rights-campaigns/evaluating-response-to-public-interest-in-animal-research-graphic-for-sr-post-02-18-13/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/evaluating-response-to-public-interest-in-animal-research-graphic-for-sr-post-02-18-13.png" data-orig-size="679,296" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":""}" data-image-title="evaluating response to public interest in animal research graphic for SR post 02.18.13" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/evaluating-response-to-public-interest-in-animal-research-graphic-for-sr-post-02-18-13.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/evaluating-response-to-public-interest-in-animal-research-graphic-for-sr-post-02-18-13.png?w=679" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/evaluating-response-to-public-interest-in-animal-research-graphic-for-sr-post-02-18-13.png?w=863" alt="" class="wp-image-4812" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/evaluating-response-to-public-interest-in-animal-research-graphic-for-sr-post-02-18-13.png 679w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/evaluating-response-to-public-interest-in-animal-research-graphic-for-sr-post-02-18-13.png?w=150 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/evaluating-response-to-public-interest-in-animal-research-graphic-for-sr-post-02-18-13.png?w=300 300w" sizes="(max-width: 679px) 100vw, 679px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Range of approaches to public communication about animal research. <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2013/02/20/raising-the-bar-what-makes-an-effective-public-response-in-the-face-of-animal-rights-campaigns/">https://speakingofresearch.com/2013/02/20/raising-the-bar-what-makes-an-effective-public-response-in-the-face-of-animal-rights-campaigns/</a></figcaption></figure></div>
Thus, despite the proliferation and growth of industries and professions related to laboratory animal research and compliance over the past decades, we see no evidence of commensurate growth in meaningful, responsive, and inclusive public outreach. We have seen increases in regulatory burden and promulgation of standards sometimes supported by empirical evidence, and other times appearing disconnected from benefit to either animal welfare or science, appearing almost as capitulation to whims and additional rationale to support job creation, expansion of pay-for-certification, and growth of pay-for-accreditation. The situation can lead us to ask whether desire for robotic-like checking of boxes has substituted for real wrestling with moral dilemmas. And we – as a community – can, and should, debate each of those points.
But a probable consensus point is that an expansion of regulatory burden (and accompanying costs) has occurred, a change that is widely thought to be partially influenced by risk aversion on the part of institutions and by the influence of decades of campaigns against animal research. And further, there has been no commensurate change in support for public outreach, public education, and public engagement.
There simply is no regulation, no broad community standard, no pressure, and no consistent encouragement for the scientific community and the institutions in which research occurs to adopt any kind of standard for either proactive or reactive public outreach and education. As a result, the variance ranges from serious, engaged, and responsive public programs to close to nothing at all.
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/position-statements-on-animal-research1.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="12091" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/home/position-statements-on-animal-research/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/position-statements-on-animal-research1.jpg" data-orig-size="248,164" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Position Statements on animal research" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/position-statements-on-animal-research1.jpg?w=248" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/position-statements-on-animal-research1.jpg?w=248" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/position-statements-on-animal-research1.jpg?w=863" alt="" class="wp-image-12091" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/position-statements-on-animal-research1.jpg 248w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/position-statements-on-animal-research1.jpg?w=150 150w" sizes="(max-width: 248px) 100vw, 248px" /></a></figure></div>
Why does it matter to the public?
There are many reasons that institutions—academic and commercial, public and private– should engage in sustained and serious efforts to communicate fully about their animal research programs. Some of those surround individual principles, goals, and reputations. Some surround the time, energy, and reputational costs of campaigns against their programs.
But what all of them should remember – and what the public should hold them accountable for – is their leadership and contribution to a much bigger picture.
There is no shortage of campaigns against scientific research. That includes studies of other animals, among them biomedical and behavioral science that seeks basic understanding and new knowledge that together are the foundation for advances to benefit society, the health of humans and other animals, and the environment.
Thus, when scientific research and scientists are under attack, it not only scientists, universities, institutions, and funders that are at risk. Rather, it is society at large, the environment, and the global future. Ultimately, it is the public that decides what science should be done, where it is done, how it is funded, and it is the public that shapes the regulatory system under which research is conducted, overseen, and convened.
Individual institutions, companies, and funders decide what it is they will support within their walls or funding mechanisms. Scientists themselves, though, decide whether–or not– they will use their creativity, intellect, training, time, and energy to conduct research, to apply for funding to do so, to continue to invest themselves in addressing questions and producing new knowledge and discoveries.
Simply put:
<ul>
<li>Scientists can choose whether, or not, to do science. Whether they do so is affected by many factors. Among them is institutional and societal support, as well as the impact of campaigns against them.</li>
<li>Institutions can choose whether, or not, to actively and effectively support their research programs.</li>
<li>The public can choose whether, or not, they want to support science broadly, or support particular avenues for scientific discovery and advances.</li>
</ul>
But none of these decisions is truly independent, nor are they simple. That is the point. The ability to do science, to engage and retain scientists, and to benefit from science are interdependent in many ways, are complex, and require serious consideration by scientists, institutions, funders, and the broad public. Part of the obligation of research institutions is to contribute to this broader consideration that informs decisions and the future, including the future of their own programs and ability to conduct research.
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter" id="attachment_12147"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/support-for-animal-research-in-the-uk-and-us.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="12147" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2017/08/21/science-magazine-discusses-the-transparency-surrounding-animal-research/support-for-animal-research-in-the-uk-and-us/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/support-for-animal-research-in-the-uk-and-us.jpg" data-orig-size="1055,898" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Support for animal research in the UK and US" data-image-description="Original here: http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/07/woo-public-europe-opens-animal-experiments-us-less-transparent
" data-image-caption="Credits: J. You/Science; (Data) Ipsos MORI, Gallup
" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/support-for-animal-research-in-the-uk-and-us.jpg?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/support-for-animal-research-in-the-uk-and-us.jpg?w=863" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/support-for-animal-research-in-the-uk-and-us.jpg?w=300&h=255" alt="" class="wp-image-12147" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/support-for-animal-research-in-the-uk-and-us.jpg?w=300&h=255 300w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/support-for-animal-research-in-the-uk-and-us.jpg?w=600&h=510 600w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/support-for-animal-research-in-the-uk-and-us.jpg?w=150&h=128 150w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credits: J. You/Science; (Data) Ipsos MORI, Gallup</figcaption></figure></div>
Why should institutions speak up? Can’t scientists say whatever they want? (also, isn’t it their job?)
Short answer: No.
Although university tenured faculty are fairly privileged with respect to protection of their academic freedom to speak about their scholarly work, many scientists, including those who study animals, are under both implicit and explicit pressure that prevent them from speaking freely or engaging in public dialogue about their work. Imagine that. You’re a university, state, federal, or private employee – a scientist with deep knowledge and conviction about how your research benefits society, about how the nonhuman animal studies are necessary and without alternative – but you are muzzled in the face of campaigns against your work. Obviously, this is a bad spot for the scientist. But you know what?
It is also a bad thing for the public. Why? Because it prevents the public from hearing from the experts in the area. The strength of a democracy relies upon an informed citizenry to make decisions. An important piece of the informed part depends upon having access the full range of information – the knowns, the unknowns, the potential short-term and long-term benefits and risks of a various decisions and courses of action.
When scientists, institutions, and federal agencies fail to contribute their own expertise, they fall short of contributing what is needed to assist effective public decisions. In fact, what we have seen many times is the dominance of campaigns led with loud voices emphasizing only a select set of facts. We see decisions get made that effectively ignore science, ignore its process, and set aside the risks that are associated with failing to conduct particular kinds of scientific research, or address particular kinds of questions.
At the end of the day, the public can decide to ban research in some topics or research with some species. Or, they can impose regulatory and paperwork hurdles that are so high and cause such delays that scientists must choose to do something else. And, of course, public campaigns can result in a such a significant and broad range of harassment tactics that scientists are left little choice but to protect their families, loved ones, and own health – all of which mean changing their research.
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/image-20160505-19765-sm1aov.png"><img data-attachment-id="10146" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2016/05/26/we-mightnt-like-it-but-there-are-ethical-reasons-to-use-animals-in-medical-research/image-20160505-19765-sm1aov/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/image-20160505-19765-sm1aov.png" data-orig-size="754,501" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="image-20160505-19765-sm1aov" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/image-20160505-19765-sm1aov.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/image-20160505-19765-sm1aov.png?w=754" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/image-20160505-19765-sm1aov.png?w=300&h=199" alt="" class="wp-image-10146" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/image-20160505-19765-sm1aov.png?w=300&h=199 300w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/image-20160505-19765-sm1aov.png?w=600&h=398 600w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/image-20160505-19765-sm1aov.png?w=150&h=100 150w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Source: SoR Media Library</figcaption></figure></div>
None of these outcomes is a victory for the public, for the future, or for science. Few of these are based in serious, thoughtful, fact-informed consideration of the benefits and risks of different courses of action.
All of these issues, however, reflect something that is known quite well by opponents of animal research. Opponent groups need “victories” to provide evidence of their effectiveness to current and potential donors. For some, “victories” are any occasion in which a scientist or a lab appears to cease studies. For others, the metric is the gross number of media stories related to their campaigns. Neither is an outcome particularly well anchored in a public good or a change in animal research.
Given the choice of a publicly open and likely-to-defend-the-work target and one with one or both hands (and mouth tied), an opponent group would just be lacking in savvy to choose the unmuzzled opponent. Conversely, a target with little evidence of proactive public coverage of its animal research and little history of defending its scientists, must appear as perfect game. In many of these cases, it is worth noting that the scientists themselves know how to talk about the work, why it is justified, why it is in the public’s interest, why it has benefit, how the animals are cared for. Why? Because every single one of those points is requisite to grant applications, to IACUC protocols, to scientific publications and presentations. It may be the case that the institution or agency’s press office, administration or IACUC is not able to rapidly articulate those points, but the scientists most often can. That does not mean that the scientist should be the only person talking– it means that they should be both supported and included in public communications.
Why institutions?
Speaking of Research encourages a wide range of people in public education and dialogue about animal research. Public communication, dialogue, and defense of science are close to the heart for many of us. It is also true that for scientists, advocacy is one of many jobs—the first jobs being to conduct science, make discoveries, teach and mentor the next generation, provide a whole range of service to the field and public. At this point in history, it also could not be more apparent that there are urgent and competing needs that we – as scientists and as humans – must be concerned. And so, at this point, it is even more apparent than before that we need more. We need more voices and a change in community-wide approaches in order to meet our collective obligation to the public and the future.
<figure class="wp-block-image"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a-trans-atlantic-transparency-gap-on-animal-experiments.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="12146" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2017/08/21/science-magazine-discusses-the-transparency-surrounding-animal-research/a-trans-atlantic-transparency-gap-on-animal-experiments/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a-trans-atlantic-transparency-gap-on-animal-experiments.jpg" data-orig-size="965,522" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="A trans-Atlantic transparency gap on animal experiments" data-image-description="From Science
" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a-trans-atlantic-transparency-gap-on-animal-experiments.jpg?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a-trans-atlantic-transparency-gap-on-animal-experiments.jpg?w=863" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a-trans-atlantic-transparency-gap-on-animal-experiments.jpg?w=863&h=466" alt="" class="wp-image-12146" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a-trans-atlantic-transparency-gap-on-animal-experiments.jpg?w=861&h=466 861w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a-trans-atlantic-transparency-gap-on-animal-experiments.jpg?w=150&h=81 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a-trans-atlantic-transparency-gap-on-animal-experiments.jpg?w=300&h=162 300w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a-trans-atlantic-transparency-gap-on-animal-experiments.jpg?w=768&h=415 768w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/a-trans-atlantic-transparency-gap-on-animal-experiments.jpg 965w" sizes="(max-width: 863px) 100vw, 863px" /></a></figure>
There is a need for every institution, company, funder, and scientific organization to communicate with the public. That communication needs to be embedded at every level. It needs to be valued on par with everything else. And it needs to be distributed across all of the groups that contribute to scientific and medical advances with science that involves other animals. What it does not need is a sole student, sole post-doc, sole scientist, a single or small set of institutions or research areas, taking all the heat, flak, and incoming without the full support and engagement of their institutions and communities. Particularly, without effective, committed, and public support from those who have accepted the charge of providing the supportive environment and context for the research.
There are a lot of battles to fight in science. That goes beyond the topic of the science and beyond research with other animals. Institutions and agencies that support research— contributing to scientific discoveries and advances that benefit society, other animals, and the environment— have an important role to play in defending that work and the people who do it.  Failing to do so jeopardizes the science and scientists, but moreover, the public that stands to lose in absence of discoveries and serious, fact-informed consideration of decisions about the work and the future.
Allyson J. Bennett
The opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of my employer, the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Read more about approaches that universities, companies, and others can take to support pro-active, responsive public communication about animal research:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2014/12/01/what-makes-a-good-animal-research-statement/">What makes a good animal research statement</a></li>
<li><a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2009/12/10/university-leadership-and-animal-research-a-dean%e2%80%99s-perspective/">University leadership and animal research: A Dean’s perspective</a></li>
<li><a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2013/02/20/raising-the-bar-what-makes-an-effective-public-response-in-the-face-of-animal-rights-campaigns/">Raising the bar: What makes an effective public response in the face of animal rights campaigns</a></li>
<li><a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2012/01/24/an-open-letter-to-the-laboratory-animal-veterinary-community-and-research-institution-administration/">An open letter to the laboratory animal veterinary community and research institution administration</a></li>
<li><a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2010/09/08/speaking-up-who-does-%E2%80%98no-comment%E2%80%99-work-for/">Speaking Up – who does “no comment” work for?</a></li>
<li><a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2017/03/30/cameras-in-the-lab-animal-research-visualised/">Cameras in Labs: Animal research visualized</a></li>
<li><a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2013/06/10/charities-doing-animal-research-outreach-right/">Charities doing animal research right</a></li>
<li><a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2014/01/22/outreach-not-out-of-reach/">Outreach, not out of reach</a></li>
</ul>
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<title>Alzheimer’s Research with Primates: Speaking of Research in The Conversation</title>
<link>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/02/alzheimers-research-with-primates-speaking-of-research-in-the-conversation/</link>
<comments>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/02/alzheimers-research-with-primates-speaking-of-research-in-the-conversation/#respond</comments>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Editor]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Fri, 02 Sep 2022 16:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[SR in the Media]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[alzheimer's disease]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal research]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal testing]]></category>
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<category><![CDATA[primate research]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[September 2, 2022 In a new article in The Conversation, three Speaking of Research committee members write about how primate research can advance understanding of Alzheimer’s Disease. The topic is an important one, affecting many people.  The authors write: “As of 2022, an estimated 6.5 million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease, an illness that robs people … <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/02/alzheimers-research-with-primates-speaking-of-research-in-the-conversation/" class="more-link">Continue reading Alzheimer’s Research with Primates: Speaking of Research in The Conversation</a>]]></description>
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September 2, 2022
In a new <a href="https://theconversation.com/expanding-alzheimers-research-with-primates-could-overcome-the-problem-with-treatments-that-show-promise-in-mice-but-dont-help-humans-188207">article</a> in The Conversation, three Speaking of Research <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/about/committee/">committee</a> members write about how primate research can advance understanding of Alzheimer’s Disease. The topic is an important one, affecting many people. 
The authors write: “As of 2022, an estimated<a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.12638"> 6.5 million Americans</a> have Alzheimer’s disease, an illness that robs people of their memories, independence and personality, causing suffering to both patients and their families. That number may double by 2060. The U.S. has made<a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/science.361.6405.838"> considerable investments</a> in Alzheimer’s research, having allocated<a href="https://www.alz.org/news/2022/increase-in-federal-alzheimers-and-dementia-resear"> US$3.5 billion in federal funding</a> this year.”
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/newcastle-monkey.png"><img data-attachment-id="10747" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2016/10/31/nonhuman-primate-research-gives-us-otherwise-impossible-treatments/newcastle-monkey/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/newcastle-monkey.png" data-orig-size="926,620" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="newcastle-monkey" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="One of Newcastle’s macaque monkeys. Newcastle University, Photo credit: S. Baker
" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/newcastle-monkey.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/newcastle-monkey.png?w=863" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/newcastle-monkey.png?w=863" alt="" class="wp-image-10747" width="520" height="347" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/newcastle-monkey.png?w=518 518w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/newcastle-monkey.png?w=150 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/newcastle-monkey.png?w=300 300w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/newcastle-monkey.png?w=768 768w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/newcastle-monkey.png 926w" sizes="(max-width: 520px) 100vw, 520px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo credit: S. Baker</figcaption></figure></div>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Why animal models?</h2>
The article addresses the necessity of animal models in advancing animal research, and particularly why the nonhuman primate model can fill gaps that the traditionally relied-upon mouse model cannot. The authors also explain why non-animal research alternatives can’t replace living animals.
“A critical aspect of understanding what goes awry in Alzheimer’s disease is the relationship between brain and behavior. Researchers rely heavily on animal models to do these types of studies because<a href="https://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/air/why.htm"> ethical and practical issues</a> make them impossible to conduct in people.
In recent years, researchers have developed<a href="https://doi.org/10.15252/embj.2021110002"> alternative methods</a> to study Alzheimer’s, such as computer models and cell cultures. Although these options show promise for advancing Alzheimer’s research, they don’t supersede the need for animal models because of important limitations.
One is their inability to replicate the complexity of the human brain. The human brain has an estimated<a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/cne.21974"> 86 billion neurons</a> that perform highly complex computations. While computer models can simulate the workings of specific neural circuits, they are unable to fully capture these complex interactions and work best when used<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2021.07.015"> in concert with animal models</a>.
Similarly, cell cultures and brain organoids – miniature brains derived from human stem cells – are<a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2020.00396"> unable to adequately mimic</a> the aging process and all the ways the components of the human body interact with one another.
As a result of these limitations, researchers turn to animal models that better reflect human biology and disease processes.”
Interested in learning more? View the full article at: 
<a href="https://theconversation.com/expanding-alzheimers-research-with-primates-could-overcome-the-problem-with-treatments-that-show-promise-in-mice-but-dont-help-humans-188207" rel="nofollow">https://theconversation.com/expanding-alzheimers-research-with-primates-could-overcome-the-problem-with-treatments-that-show-promise-in-mice-but-dont-help-humans-188207</a>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/09/image.png"><img data-attachment-id="22150" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/09/02/alzheimers-research-with-primates-speaking-of-research-in-the-conversation/image-13/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/09/image.png" data-orig-size="2020,812" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="image" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/09/image.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/09/image.png?w=863" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/09/image.png?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-22150" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/09/image.png?w=1024 1024w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/09/image.png?w=150 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/09/image.png?w=300 300w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/09/image.png?w=768 768w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/09/image.png 2020w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Source: The Conversation</figcaption></figure>
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<title>The study of animals and bio-inspired designs</title>
<link>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/26/the-study-of-animals-and-bio-inspired-designs/</link>
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<pubDate>Fri, 26 Aug 2022 14:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Science News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal research]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[bio-inspired designs]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Biomimicry]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[chitosan]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[fibroin]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[gecko]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[insect]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Jeremy Bailoo]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[shrimp]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[woodpecker]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[August 26th 2022Jeremy D. Bailoo Did you know that the study of animals often leads to a host of other applications beyond cures for humans? One field in particular, that of bio-inspired designs, often receives far less attention than it should—but is an amazing example of how the study of animals can lead to the … <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/26/the-study-of-animals-and-bio-inspired-designs/" class="more-link">Continue reading The study of animals and bio-inspired designs</a>]]></description>
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August 26th 2022 Jeremy D. Bailoo
Did you know that the study of animals often leads to a host of other applications beyond cures for humans? One field in particular, that of bio-inspired designs, often receives far less attention than it should—but is an amazing example of how the study of animals can lead to the application of such knowledge in research and development to solve technical problems and to develop technical inventions and innovation. For example, we recently <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/07/25/concussions-what-do-woodpeckers-have-to-do-with-it/">wrote about</a> how decades of study of woodpeckers informed the design characteristics of sport safety devices, such as helmets. Similarly, the aerodynamic front of the Japanese bullet train, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinkansen">the Shinkansen</a>, was inspired by a beak of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingfisher">Kingfisher bird</a>.
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<figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img data-attachment-id="22126" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/26/the-study-of-animals-and-bio-inspired-designs/kingfisher-bullet-train/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/kingfisher-bullet-train.png" data-orig-size="1056,492" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="kingfisher-bullet-train" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/kingfisher-bullet-train.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/kingfisher-bullet-train.png?w=863" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/kingfisher-bullet-train.png?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-22126" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/kingfisher-bullet-train.png?w=1024 1024w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/kingfisher-bullet-train.png?w=150 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/kingfisher-bullet-train.png?w=300 300w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/kingfisher-bullet-train.png?w=768 768w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/kingfisher-bullet-train.png 1056w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Source: Engineer Eiji Nakatsu was inspired by the beak of a kingfisher for the design of Japan’s 200-mph Bullet train (bottom).</figcaption></figure></div>
And, the study of how Geckos climb vertically up walls without falling has led to the production of a material called <a href="https://geckskin.umass.edu/">GeckSkin</a>TM which can hold up to 700 pounds on a smooth surface, such as glass. In fact, the sheer number of examples of bio-inspired designs are myriad, and span the fields of Chemistry, Biology, Engineering, Physics, Architecture—to name a few. 
Now researchers at Harvard are using bioinspired design to tackle one of the greatest problems of our time—the creation of easily degradable plastic products. One product in particular, <a href="https://wyss.harvard.edu/technology/bioplastic/">Shrilk</a>, is “made using a material called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitosan">chitosan</a> (found in shrimp shells) and a protein from silk called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fibroin">fibroin</a> that mimics the microarchitecture of insects’ exoskeletons. Shrilk can be used to manufacture objects without the environmental damage caused by conventional synthetic plastics, and it rapidly biodegrades when placed in compost, releasing nitrogen-rich nutrient fertilizer. Because chitosan and fibroin are both used in FDA-approved devices, Shrilk also may be useful for creating implantable foams, films, and scaffolds for surgical closures, wound healing, tissue engineering, and regenerative medicine applications.”
The result — a plastic product that degrades readily with low environmental impact. Did you know that humans have produced roughly 8,300 million metric tons of plastic since the 1950s, the vast majority of which has been thrown out as waste.
<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/P4DifUBqXSxaR5jPcyVvkkF06UOEpprsZ1AxgzCmCil_fKDK8oImbs1uiuBIojTcH5v2ShqN-rT_YQHzRRUiHKM6ukpdS6e3rwHVCLrmMgRETqGq77RAStW9qsqZzrTxva-YB9hEnzw4luwwtTTNB64" alt="" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University</figcaption></figure>
So, when you think about the innumerable and immeasurable ways that animal research benefits not only our day to day lives, but also that of the world, you can add one more area to that list—that of bioinspired designs.
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<title>Context matters-2022 Gallup poll</title>
<link>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/25/context-matters-2022-gallup-poll/</link>
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<dc:creator><![CDATA[Editor]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Thu, 25 Aug 2022 15:15:32 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Science News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal research]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal testing]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[FBR]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[foundation for biomedical research]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Gallup]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Gish Gallup]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[moral acceptability]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[moral issues]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">http://speakingofresearch.com/?p=22121</guid>
<description><![CDATA[August 25th 2022 Gallup recently released their annual poll of Americans on moral issues, covering a wide range of topics including animals research and testing. Similar to past years, 52% of Americans view testing and research on animals as morally acceptable. (This contrasts with other uses of animals: 60% view buying or wearing clothing made … <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/25/context-matters-2022-gallup-poll/" class="more-link">Continue reading Context matters-2022 Gallup poll</a>]]></description>
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August 25th 2022
Gallup recently released their <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/393515/americans-say-birth-control-divorce-morally-acceptable.aspx">annual poll of Americans on moral issues</a>, covering a wide range of topics including animals research and testing. Similar to past years, 52% of Americans view testing and research on animals as morally acceptable. (This contrasts with other uses of animals: 60% view buying or wearing clothing made of animal fur as morally acceptable, and 38% view cloning animals as morally acceptable.)
<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/uy6IoV42m6qGSBN_VLBKM15w8ltVXDA4mkyaevRaQa9UmJFOBJ2KQJ7HFhv63Ii5Exw1tBMo3xJ46miN3fDtA7fYlOewQ1bxnYzWGj-JbvThC6FUgyp3egOnwiYt-_skGxd0BuexgpMEFFB47GtXUA" alt="Chart, bar chart
Description automatically generated" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Image source: Gallup.</figcaption></figure>
However, as with most everything related to animal-based research, context matters. Readers of our blog know that the types of questions that pollsters ask influence American’s views on the acceptability of animal research and testing. As we’ve published before, other polls such as those conducted by the <a href="https://fbresearch.org/polls/">Foundation for Biomedical Research</a> (FBR) that contain questions with more context reveal that the <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2021/06/16/unveiled-the-moveable-middle-on-animal-research-is-larger-than-we-thought/">“movable middle” on animal research</a> is larger than the Gallup poll suggests.
In 2021, just 18% of respondents to FBR’s poll said medical testing on animals is morally wrong, compared with 39% of Gallup respondents (this year, 43% said it is wrong). Why the discrepancy? Look to the questions asked: Gallup asked simply, “Regardless of whether or not you think it should be legal, for each one, please tell me whether you personally believe that in general it is morally acceptable or morally wrong.” In contrast, FBR anchored the questions on animal research and testing with greater nuance and context, asking, “Please indicate whether you personally believe the humane use of animals in scientific research to develop lifesaving medicines for people and pets is morally acceptable or morally wrong.” <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2021/06/16/unveiled-the-moveable-middle-on-animal-research-is-larger-than-we-thought/">If you want a thoughtful response, ask a thought-provoking question.</a>
<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_d1Dz6sI148GBU319bRS9Bp-DeGx2BuDnnsn2Yx9ck1xXozmTnYUd5AMwifONYa-0OXbz3Y3MpIf1lcJDj7KqJLpbWTmXsRCdBuIguFh5uxCatGgqxT5H4NNfzcElrTZZbRnElAzgrj1LKSZ7P48GA" alt="Chart, bar chart
Description automatically generated" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Image source: FBR.</figcaption></figure>
Per FBR’s recent e-mail newsletter, it will soon release its 2022 poll commissioned in partnership with Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. This poll will investigate different ways of explaining animal research to the American public by asking, among other questions, about the types of studies in which Americans believe animal research is acceptable and the species of animals they believe are acceptable for use in research. Speaking of Research will report on the results of this poll as soon as they are available – watch this space!
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<title>Part 2. A Better Life with HIV/AIDS: From the Biomedical Laboratory to Reality</title>
<link>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/19/part-2-a-better-life-with-hiv-aids-from-the-biomedical-laboratory-to-reality/</link>
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<dc:creator><![CDATA[Editor2]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Fri, 19 Aug 2022 14:29:12 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal research]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[HIV/AIDS]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[James N. Nkhoswe]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Network of Zambian People Living with HIV]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[NZP+]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Renee Hartig]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Zambia]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">http://speakingofresearch.com/?p=22103</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Case Study- Zambia. An Interview with Marshall Mweshi, an HIV/AIDS information advocate and affiliate with the Network of Zambian People Living with HIV (NZP+) 8/19/2022 James N. Nkhoswe and Renée Hartig Yesterday we posted on the current situation with living with HIV/AIDS, discussing how treatments are coming to fruition but COVID-19, red-tape, religion, and poverty … <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/19/part-2-a-better-life-with-hiv-aids-from-the-biomedical-laboratory-to-reality/" class="more-link">Continue reading Part 2. A Better Life with HIV/AIDS: From the Biomedical Laboratory to Reality</a>]]></description>
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Case Study- Zambia. An Interview with Marshall Mweshi, an HIV/AIDS information advocate and affiliate with the Network of Zambian People Living with HIV (NZP+)
8/19/2022
James N. Nkhoswe and Renée Hartig
Yesterday we posted on the current situation with living with HIV/AIDS, discussing how treatments are coming to fruition but COVID-19, red-tape, religion, and poverty are creating bottlenecks for getting those treatments to patients. Today we interview Marshall Mweshi, an HIV/AIDS information advocate. 
Q: What is the name of the organization that you work with?
The <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Nonprofit-organization/Network-of-Zambian-People-Living-with-Hiv-NZP-1459890594315370/">Network of Zambian People Living with HIV (NZP+)</a>. There is also a mini group: Luyando Support Group – to empower women and gather funds for entrepreneurship, targeting mostly rural areas (where it’s difficult to access drugs), and provide good nutrition.
Q: Is the work volunteer-based? Can other individuals become involved in this effort?
All work is voluntary and anyone is welcome to join. Both local and international individuals interested to join and help out, whether in Zambia or abroad, are welcome to come on board and help empowerment in any form, whether monetary based or to meet the group and share their lives with people living with HIV/AIDs (PLWHA). 
Most work is to support group projects, such as agriculture and tailoring, as well as education and information on how to take care of their children (most of them are also living with HIV/AIDS). To teach PLWHA to be independent and not rely as much on the government.
Q:  Who are the partners (local, regional, continental and/or international)?
We partner with local community leaders as well as internationally with our partner, Adam Cape, from the UK.
Q:  What would you say is the mission or goal of this organization?
Our current focus is Southern Zambia. We would like to move the project to many parts of Zambia and grow it nationwide, targeting new areas both in urban and rural (e.g., Choma) areas.
The challenge is to address a healthy diet that is lacking. Hence, mothers are stopping children from taking drugs, even though drugs may be accessible in urban areas. 
Our overall goals are door-to-door communication, home visits (check-ups) on people on ART [antiretroviral therapy]. To see that PLWHA have a normal life and are able to access drugs as well as food and other services, such as education, is our mission.
Q: Is there a measure or metric used to help infer the success of the organization in carrying out its goals?
Engage with other organizations and help bring more people on board, taking for example the work done already in Choma, Zambia. 
Q:  Where is the work primarily focused?
In Southern Zambia: Livingstone rural areas, such as Libuyu. Urban areas too, like Maramba and Choma. In these regions we focus on the lack of information, education projects, and food. Women are mostly targeted because they are the ones who have the most parent-child time and are most affected.
Q:  Is there motivation to expand efforts to reach a greater number of people?
That motivation can only come, if at all, by reaching out to a number of people. This is contingent upon further engagement. 
Q:  What may be one of the biggest benefits that this program provides?
To see a change in their livelihoods, for the adults and the children, and see to it that they are able to engage in different businesses and fulfilling activities. 
Q: What do you personally enjoy about this work or what is one thing that brings you satisfaction?
It’s an unbelievable feeling […] coming from the people living with this virus. I’ve seen the difficulties, I’ve seen their difficulties. To see that working, it really gives me satisfaction. To hear PLWHA say: “I can do anything even if I have HIV/AIDS,” it gives me such satisfaction to hear that. 
Q:  What more do you think could be done to help improve the current situation? 
To learn from people and organizations and to learn from ideas to be able to see a number of things that should be done differently and be improved on. 
Q:  How do you deal with a situation which may be influenced by religious leaders?
It is a problem on the ground and a major issue when it leads people to stop taking the drugs. Organizations have to work with churches, but also education is needed to help support the community.
Q: How can you ensure funds are directed where they are most needed? Funneling investments? 
A number of people have not been reached out to, a lack of full engagement on the ground, this is something evident by the lack of support for those people on the ground. Giving out money is not as sustainable as providing education and engagement. I would like nothing more than to see that everyone is engaged and receives the right information.
<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/V_dxOai2gfaWvnwFPcyZuOeFq-PaBokglY8fbTI9Ga5SE4kMyvgdYsmw4fkSmdYCt922a0RC5U1bF9W_qHKU6vT7xiUG-S32CxwlBFRv7IX5KE0EwMJzeiMwNIh2cY8n03SMem-MCBlSbJT-fSNJoA" alt="" /></figure>
Take-Home Message
Scientific evidence supports the use of antiretroviral drugs to treat HIV/AIDS, providing PLWHA with the means to live a long, healthy life1,2. Thanks to biomedical research with animals, we have such drugs at our disposal and new advances in treatment are well underway (such as with gene-editing technology). Clinical trials are always necessary to test the efficacy in humans. While some individuals may not be inclined to take pharmaceuticals or cannot afford treatment, herbal remedies have been promoted by various traditional practitioners, particularly within spiritual communities. Traditional healing must nonetheless be subject to the scientific process3, just like any other treatment, to corroborate potential healing power (see <a href="https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/fr/node/207488">clinical trials in Zambia</a>). New medical discoveries and advancements must receive fair reception for trial and experimental justice within encouraging time-frames to permit the observation of effects. To ease the burden of taking medication daily, researchers have been developing a long-lasting drug-delivery system in the form of a subcutaneous implant3,4. A <a href="https://www.genengnews.com/news/hiv-drug-delivery-made-easier-with-long-acting-implant/">seven-year study in animals</a> showed how this new technology can deliver different types of drugs needed in tandem and consistently deliver for long periods of time before needing a replacement. Efforts to improve the accessibility and delivery of life-saving drugs may well help us reach the goal for 2030, while biomedical researchers continue to develop a vaccine for HIV.
References
1       Mascolini, M. (February 22-25, 2016). Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI).  USA,  Boston MA.
2        Flexner, C. (July, 2018). Antiretroviral implants for treatment and prevention of HIV infection. Current Opinion in HIV and AIDS: Volume 13 – Issue 4 – p 374-380 doi: 10.1097/COH.0000000000000470
3    Chinsembu, K. (October 23, 2009). Model and experiences of initiating collaboration with traditional healers in validation of ethnomedicines for HIV/AIDS in Namibia. J Ethnobiol Ethnomed. ;5:30. doi: 10.1186/1746-4269-5-30. PMID: 19852791; PMCID: PMC2771007.
4    Weld, E. and Flexner, C. (January, 2020). Long-acting implants to treat and prevent HIV infection. Curr Opin HIV AIDS. 5(1):33-41. doi: 10.1097/COH.0000000000000591. PMID: 31764198; PMCID: PMC7050620.
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<title>A Better Life with HIV/AIDS: From the Biomedical Laboratory to Reality</title>
<link>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/18/a-better-life-with-hiv-aids-from-the-biomedical-laboratory-to-reality/</link>
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<dc:creator><![CDATA[Editor2]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Thu, 18 Aug 2022 15:30:28 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal research]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[antiretroviral]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[AZT]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[gene editing]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[hiv]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[HIV/AIDS]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[International AIDS Vaccine Initiative]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[James N. Nkhoswe]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Marshall Mweshi]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Network of Zambian People Living with HIV]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[NZP+]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Renee Hartig]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[August 18, 2022 James N. Nkhoswe and Renée Hartig Part 1: Shall we speak of today’s reality in regards to HIV/AIDS? Disease often knows no boundaries. Long a worldwide issue, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), a virus that damages the immune system and weakens the body’s ability to fight infections and disease, can lead to Acquired … <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/18/a-better-life-with-hiv-aids-from-the-biomedical-laboratory-to-reality/" class="more-link">Continue reading A Better Life with HIV/AIDS: From the Biomedical Laboratory to Reality</a>]]></description>
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August 18, 2022 
James N. Nkhoswe and Renée Hartig
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Part 1: Shall we speak of today’s reality in regards to HIV/AIDS?</h2>
Disease often knows no boundaries. Long a worldwide issue, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), a virus that damages the immune system and weakens the body’s ability to fight infections and disease, can lead to Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), unless treated. AIDS is marked by a severe decrease in white blood cells, namely the immune system’s CD4 helper T cells, which HIV attacks. This cascade of events renders the body useless in fighting off bacterial and other viral infections. But hooray! The good news is that HIV can now be treated successfully, and those with the virus have a fair shot at a good life. Here, we chronicle some of the challenges of combating HIV/AIDS, along with recent advances in the biomedical laboratory, and how life with HIV can be made better as a result of science and education.
<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/fuCpdThmYI2t2pfotHqGAffUdMZkxgXeM-A7rYWfsQypVKX-jAJK4GwdhTWB3FBBN0P92aCzpoiXZAEITD8k8eV3d6T1V0NnzE0ZY357soq1GwdHSY_5PVHXFL4bIvXZNRjXYFY77_9YhYn69oss-A" alt="" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Both adults and children are affected by the global HIV epidemic. Living with HIV is a reality for over 37 million individuals worldwide. Source: World Health Organization (WHO, 2021).</figcaption></figure>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">State-of-the-art treatments coming to fruition </h2>
Since 1988, the World Health Organization (WHO) has designated the 1st of December as <a href="https://www.worldaidsday.org/">World AIDS Day</a> to remember and acknowledge the continuous, important fight against HIV and AIDS. This fight is currently carried out in the biochemical laboratory as well as in the real world. While there is no cure for HIV/AIDS, there are life-saving treatments available — treatments that otherwise would not have been developed without basic and translational research. Thanks to antiretroviral drugs, the lifespan of a human with or without HIV is roughly about the same. Life expectancy at age 20 jumped from 19 to 53 in the HIV group from 1996 to 2011 with the help of antiviral medication1. This statistic contrasts starkly against a quarter-century ago, when HIV/AIDS was the leading cause of death among Americans aged 25 to 44 (<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00040227.htm#:~:text=Among%20persons%20aged%2025%2D44%20years%2C%20HIV%20infection%20was%20the,YPLL%2D65%20from%20all%20causes.">CDC, 1996</a>).
Animal research has been crucial for every major breakthrough in HIV treatment, in part because HIV is very similar to the Simian Immunodeficiency Virus (SIV), which infects chimpanzees and macaques. Consequently, non-human primates were instrumental in testing the safety and effectiveness of the earliest antiretroviral treatments, including <a href="https://www.niaid.nih.gov/diseases-conditions/antiretroviral-drug-development">AZT</a> (known also as azidothymidine or zidovudine), the first drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat HIV/AIDS (<a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/04/28/what-is-failure-shelved-cancer-treatment-becomes-first-effective-aids-hiv-treatment/">see more here</a>). Studies showing that non-human primates could be immunized against SIV (e.g. <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nature12519">Hansen and colleagues in 2013</a>) further helped to demonstrate the feasibility of a vaccine for HIV in humans.
But antiretrovirals are not the only treatments. A translational treatment, brought to fruition by researchers at Temple University (Pennsylvania, USA), is based on gene-editing technology (see also <a href="https://www.eara.eu/post/firstgene-editingtherapyforhivreacheshumantrials">here</a>, <a href="https://www.drugtargetreview.com/news/99554/positive-pre-clinical-results-for-crispr-based-hiv-therapy/?mc_cid=81db4b5d04&mc_eid=bb3a10ada8">here</a>). The team at Temple developed EBT-101, a CRISPR-based (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) therapy. This therapy was successful in targeting and eliminating HIV from infected cells in humans, mice, and monkeys. This therapy has now also been approved by the FDA, opening the way to the first clinical trials of a CRISPR-based therapy for HIV infection. In addition to gene-editing technology, an idea to wake up latent HIV within a patient’s immune cells in order to neutralize has been in the works following positive results in monkeys. This research program is currently underway at GlaxoSmithKline’s HIV division, ViiV Healthcare.
One might think we can stop HIV dead in its tracks by targeting the underlying mechanisms through which HIV infects healthy immune cells. The virus presents a daunting scientific challenge because its surface provides few targets for the immune system and it <a href="https://academic.oup.com/mbe/article/35/6/1355/4989888">evolves rapidly</a>. <a href="https://www.scripps.edu/news-and-events/press-room/2022/20220228-zwick-structural-biology-hiv.html">Researchers at the Scripps Institute</a> (California, USA) are working to identify stable regions on the outer surface of HIV that could be targeted by neutralizing antibodies.
HIV contraction can also be prevented through pre/post exposure prophylaxis (PrEP/PEP). Here, for example, individuals at high risk for HIV can take antivirals prior to or immediately after being exposed to individuals with HIV. PrEP/PEP reduces the risk of contracting HIV to essentially zero. It was at the 2016 International AIDS Conference, when the society’s President at the time, Chris Beyrer, <a href="https://www.sbmt.org.br/portal/conferencia-internacional-de-aids-2016-deve-ser-lembrado-como-inicio-da-era-da-prep/?lang=en">called for unity</a> so that 2016 may mark “the beginning of the PrEP era.” Four years later, the chronicles of PrEP/PEP use were turned into a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9knOwyWK4I">short YouTube film</a> by a doctor who began PEP while unsure whether or not he had come into contact with the virus.
With groundbreaking therapies on the horizon, there is also an ambition to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S120197122030727X">develop a cure for HIV by 2030</a>. The mission of the <a href="https://www.iavi.org/">International AIDS Vaccine Initiative</a> (IAVI) is to translate biomedical science into global impact. It is worthwhile to note the role an HIV/AIDS vaccine can play in this timeline. If the vision for ending the HIV/AIDS outbreak by 2030 is well calculated, the world is 8 years away from an entirely different future. Nevertheless, there are still many unspoken bottlenecks attributed to combating HIV/AIDS, and the adoption of the latest medical interventions has not been streamlined worldwide. Many disparities remain and truly equitable treatment comes hand-in-hand with education as well as regulation and reduction of drug costs (e.g. <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-02123-x">here</a>). Informing ourselves of the process from bench to real life may help greatly in garnering further support and awareness for the complexities of managing and treating HIV/AIDS.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The unspoken bottlenecks to HIV/AIDS cure and treatment: Where are we still getting it wrong?</h2>
<img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/CQ4G8-5WKkosbqBVeTuz_GxkHLzz95TttceaeZz5m7rMdLrxw444QOEVmPAsud5ZT3ZkogYSMjyAXuCwuKdcj6N3r7J1sqoYwpDWWX6E0D9uIY49l9_vCyyCimvFekpGPwSfo8EftV_du8UsKCYjdmM" width="266" height="177">
COVID-19 Global Emergency
Similar to the Ebola virus situation, the current insurgence of COVID-19 has reduced governments’ focus on HIV/AIDS mitigation in many countries to manage lowering the number of COVID-19 infections. With strained economies, many governments, especially across African nations where HIV-related deaths are highest, have shifted their attention to COVID-19 prevention and treatment, superseding efforts of combating HIV as a tradeoff. Indeed, just examining the annual case counts and reported deaths, COVID-19 mortality ranks much higher, with approximately 6.4 million deaths reported worldwide in the two years since virus emergence (<a href="https://covid19.who.int/">World Health Organization</a>). The continued emergency of highly contagious COVID-19 variants suggest that governments need to adopt new ways of ensuring that COVID-19 prevention and treatment does not result in neglecting other viruses, such as HIV. Such a pandemic is an example of the potential setbacks to HIV/AIDS mitigation, should the resurgence of such pandemics continue. The monkeypox and other viruses remain to be a great threat to the global effort of HIV/AIDS mitigation (<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/monkeypox-response-hiv-aids-crisis-1.6535478">see recent report from CBC News</a>). COVID-19 is a wake-up call to the world as to how one epidemic can affect the control and spread of another by influencing the socio-economic status-quo of countries.
<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/1gw9JgrpfI4wSdSlz4or-VLDX-K1Fm7y19wxc1SFTz86-Bk_DLQ2ej5emnTbYUGbBrachFzaPAgDtx3c4wYFsgI3LZHxqGKAo_wKrKbgHG5xUXVId6htuquW63Zugsuna9iXC4KYNSSdYXlaDs3ZtA" alt="" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">There is a disproportionate number of deaths from HIV-related causes in Africa. In just a single year, there were 720,000 deaths across the continent. Source: World Health Organization (WHO, 2017). </figcaption></figure>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Red tape in adoption of new medical interventions</h2>
Despite the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) supporting many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) at the grassroots level of fighting against HIV/AIDS, insurgent organizations exploiting foreign aid are not all uncommon. We have analyzed the situation in local economies, particularly in West Africa, and report back on the current situation.  Interviews with the locals in Malawi and Zambia have indicated that many organizations are on the scene, mostly for employment purposes and not the actual fight. Funds provided to selected lobbyist groups have been met with corruption or other vices. In extreme cases, millions in aid have been withheld by funding organizations, such as the Global Fund (<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/10331717">BBC, 2010</a>; can also see the effect of corruption on HIV/AIDS donor funds: <a href="https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/37440512.pdf">a case study of Namibia</a>).
Recently in Zambia, new inventions of medicines have been reportedly developed among medical doctors and herbalists. Unfortunately, they have not received a perfect reception and acceptance has been subjected to a somewhat discouraging environment from HIV/AIDS organizations and government. Several traditional and religious healers in Zambia claim to have found a cure for HIV/AIDS. However, so far only samples from three herbalists have been tested for efficacy. Former works and supply minister, Ludwig Sondashi, developed the Sondashi Formula. The Mailacin Formula was developed by Howard Maila of Ndola, while Dr. John Mayeya developed the Mayeyanin Formula (see <a href="http://www.times.co.zm/?p=27987#:~:text=Former%20works%20and%20supply%20minister,has%20developed%20the%20Mayeyanin%20Formula">Times of Zambia</a>).
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Faith and tradition versus science </h2>
The role of religious beliefs in the prevention of HIV and attitudes towards the infected has received considerable attention2. Religious organizations are a fundamental part of the social structure in rural Africa and, since the beginning of the HIV epidemic, they have played a major role providing material and spiritual support to persons living with HIV/AIDS (or PLWHA). Claims that “a myriad of techniques,” such as prayer, divine intervention, or the ministrations of an individual healer can cure illness have been popular throughout history3.
The use of prayer as a means to exorcize ‘evil spirits’ and treat HIV has been associated primarily with revivalist churches. Such services, marketed as “the Lourdes of Tanzania,” are conducted in Dar es Salaam and other major cities despite the disapproval of clerical authorities2. Regarded as a Christian belief that God heals people through the power of the Holy Spirit, faith healing often involves the laying on of hands. It is also called supernatural healing, divine healing and miracle healing, among other things. Healing in the Bible is often associated with the ministry of specific individuals, including Elijah, Jesus and Paul4. “It is a problem on the ground and a major issue when it leads people to stop taking the drugs. Organizations have to work with churches, but also education is needed to help support the community,” said Marshall Mweshi, an HIV/AIDS Prevention NGO advocate from Zambia.
Virtually, scientists and philosophers dismiss faith healing as pseudoscience5. The rapid growth of Pentecostal-type revivalist churches in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) during the 1990s has coincided with the burgeoning HIV epidemic. In Tanzania, a quantitative study conducted among parishioners from both rural and urban settings showed that, in spite of widespread belief in the ability of prayer to cure HIV, most respondents would hypothetically be willing to initiate antiretroviral therapy (ART) if diagnosed with the infection6. In contrast, an earlier study conducted in Uganda showed that 1.2% of actual ART users – all of whom were members of Pentecostal churches – had discontinued treatment because they thought that they had been spiritually healed7.
A study conducted on Ethiopian “holy water” was mentioned as a reason for interrupting treatment as frequently as “not being able to afford transportation costs”8. While the role of religious beliefs on treatment adherence is inconclusive, a study conducted in Mali found an association between the belief that HIV is a “punishment from God” and fatalistic attitudes towards the disease9. In Nigeria, a detailed ethnography of a revivalist church provided vivid examples of how individuals may turn to religion as a way of coping with HIV10.
The presumed ability to combat sorcery has also been reported as a crucial factor contributing to the success of the African Pentecostalism movement11,12; whereby, expression of AIDS symptoms is attributed to witchcraft13. The use of traditional medicine to treat HIV symptoms has also been extensively documented in Tanzania and other SSA countries14,15.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Poverty and hunger</h2>
Food and nutrition is an important prerequisite to taking HIV/AIDS treatment drugs. Without ample funds to secure sustenance and treatment drugs, another issue is perpetuating the problem through births with HIV positive babies. Nutrition is a vital prerequisite to taking drugs given that most pharmaceuticals are instructed to be taken on a full stomach. When it comes down to the security of financial means, an innate preference is to secure sustenance over pharmaceuticals. When resources are limited, prioritization is given to a human’s basic needs and the acquisition of pharmaceuticals may take the back seat as a consequence.
<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/KHxv9uAbsF2W9vVc__cT1EOVB8g5NblYyRskfjNvuu4FR5fD_McHOoUXZ-zdEWdy3dp7dBUX5r1FhlNrdTLcctpBzG0JgZ_OajZ6PIh8QRvdUQVoWvsezqsAdMIy0QfB8mItj_Tr6vAuDGz9bmS7Hw" alt="" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A three-dimensional illustration of the surface and spike protrusions of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Source:Pixabay.de.</figcaption></figure>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Stay tuned…</h2>
To reiterate the importance of education and nutrition, tune in tomorrow for an interview with Marshall Mweshi, an HIV/AIDS information advocate and affiliate with the Network of Zambian People Living with HIV. 
—
References and further reading
1       Mascolini, M. (February 22-25, 2016). Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI).  USA,  Boston MA.
2     Roura, M., Nsigaye, R., Nhandi, B. et al. (2010). “Driving the devil away”: qualitative insights into miraculous cures for AIDS in a rural Tanzanian ward. Tanzania. BMC Public Health 10, 427 <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-10-427" rel="nofollow">https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-10-427</a>
3       Barrett, S. (December 27, 2009). “Some Thoughts about Faith Healing”. Quackwatch. Archived from the original on 2014-02-09. Retrieved 2014-01-23.
4               Village, A. (2005). “Dimensions of belief about miraculous healing”. Mental Health, Religion & Culture. 8 (2): 97–107. doi:10.1080/1367467042000240374. S2CID 15727398.
5      Pitt, J. and Marcello, P. (2012). Rational Changes in Science: Essays on Scientific Reasoning. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 9789400937796. Retrieved 18 April 2018. 
6           Zou, J., Yamanaka, Y., John, M., Watt, M., Ostermann, J. and Thielman, N. (March 4, 2019). Religion and HIV in Tanzania: influence of religious beliefs on HIV stigma, disclosure, and treatment attitudes. Tanzania. BMC Public Health. ;9:75. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-9-75. PMID: 19261186; PMCID: PMC2656538.
7       Wanyama, J., Castelnuovo, B., Wandera, B., Mwebaze, P., Kambugu, A., Bangsberg, D. and Kamya, M. (2007). Belief in divine healing can be a barrier to antiretroviral therapy adherence in Uganda. Aids. Uganda. 21(11): 1486-1487. 10.1097/QAD.0b013e32823ecf7f.
8              Deribe, K., Hailekiros, F., Biadgilign, S., Amberbir, A. and Beyene, B. (2008). Defaulters from antiretroviral treatment in Jimma University Specialized Hospital, Southwest Ethiopia. Trop Med Int Health. 13 (3): 328-333. 10.1111/j.1365-3156.2008.02006.x.
9              Hess, R., McKinney, D. (2007). Fatalism and HIV/AIDS Beliefs in Rural Mali, West Africa.
10     Adogame, A. (2007). HIV/AIDS support and African pentecostalism: the case of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG). J Health Psychol. 12 (3): 475-484. 10.1177/1359105307076234.
11         Newell, S. (2007). Pentecostal Witchcraft: Neoliberal Possession and Demonic Discourse in Ivoirian Pentecostal Churches, Journal of Religion in Africa, 37(4), 461-490.
12      Rio, K., MacCarthy, M., Blanes, R. (2017). Introduction to Pentecostal Witchcraft and Spiritual Politics in Africa and Melanesia. In: Rio, K., MacCarthy, M., Blanes, R. (eds) Pentecostalism and Witchcraft. Contemporary Anthropology of Religion. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
13   UNICEF and PANOS (2001). Stigma, HIV/AIDS and prevention of mother-to-child transmission: a pilot study in Zambia, India, Ukraine and Burkina Faso. London and New York PANOS Institute and UNICEF.
14         Plummer, M., Mshana, G., Wamoyi, J., Shigongo, Z., Hayes, R., Ross, D. and Wight, D. (July, 2006). The man who believed he had AIDS was cured: AIDS and sexually-transmitted infection treatment-seeking behaviour in rural Mwanza, Tanzania. AIDS Care. 18(5):460-6.
15         Mshana, G., Plummer, M., Wamoyi, J., Shigongo, Z.S., Ross, D. and Wight, D. (2006) ‘She was bewitched and caught an illness similar to AIDS’: AIDS and sexually transmitted infection causation beliefs in rural northern Tanzania. Culture, Health and Sexuality, 8(1), pp. 45-58.
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<title>Study revives cell function in the body of dead pigs </title>
<link>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/17/study-revives-cell-function-in-the-body-of-dead-pigs/</link>
<comments>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/17/study-revives-cell-function-in-the-body-of-dead-pigs/#respond</comments>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Editor2]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Aug 2022 14:09:13 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Science News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal research]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal testing]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[BrainEx]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Nenad Sestan]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[organ transplant]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[OrganEx]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[pig]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Yale School of Medicine]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[8/17/22 Speaking of Research It is estimated that 20 Americans die each day because of the unavailability of organs for transplant. Now, scientists are hoping to solve the organ crisis by researching the question: Can death be reversed? The thought-provoking study by researchers at Yale School of Medicine begins to question the inevitability of death. … <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/17/study-revives-cell-function-in-the-body-of-dead-pigs/" class="more-link">Continue reading Study revives cell function in the body of dead pigs </a>]]></description>
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8/17/22
Speaking of Research 
It is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/11/14/magazine/tech-design-xenotransplantation.html?mtrref=undefined&gwh=FBE2D9A4932F01610B1554FF95001819&gwt=pay&assetType=PAYWALL">estimated</a> that 20 Americans die each day because of the unavailability of organs for transplant. Now, scientists are hoping to solve the organ crisis by researching the question: Can death be reversed? The thought-provoking study by researchers at Yale School of Medicine begins to question the inevitability of death. The team, led by neuroscientist Nenad Sestan, reported last week in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05016-1">Nature</a> that the function of specific molecular and cell processes could be restored in pigs, 1 hour after the animals had died by cardiac arrest.
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/iowa_pig_7341687640.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="22094" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/17/study-revives-cell-function-in-the-body-of-dead-pigs/iowa_pig_7341687640/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/iowa_pig_7341687640.jpg" data-orig-size="1620,900" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"3.5","credit":"","camera":"NEX-5","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1338248458","copyright":"","focal_length":"18","iso":"640","shutter_speed":"0.033333333333333","title":"","orientation":"1"}" data-image-title="iowa_pig_7341687640" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/iowa_pig_7341687640.jpg?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/iowa_pig_7341687640.jpg?w=863" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/iowa_pig_7341687640.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-22094" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/iowa_pig_7341687640.jpg?w=1024 1024w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/iowa_pig_7341687640.jpg?w=150 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/iowa_pig_7341687640.jpg?w=300 300w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/iowa_pig_7341687640.jpg?w=768 768w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/iowa_pig_7341687640.jpg 1620w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"> Photo credit: Steve Evans from Citizen of the World, CC BY 2.0 <<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0" target="_blank">https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0</a>>, via Wikimedia Commons </figcaption></figure>
The study built upon<a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1099-1"> previous findings</a>, in which the team was able to restore circulation and cellular activity in isolated pig brains, using BrainEx, a perfusion technology which provided the brains with a solution designed to provide a brain-specific chemical environment. In the new study published in Nature, the researchers wanted to translate this technology to the whole body, a challenging feat because perfusion of the whole body has additional complications, such as coagulation, immune response and multisystem physiological problems.
What did the researchers do?
Based on the BrainEx principles, the researchers designed a new perfusion system for whole-body perfusion, called<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05016-1"> OrganEx</a>, consisting of a pump device, a sensor system and a special mixture of the animal’s own blood and chemical solution. The team obtained pigs from a local farm breeder and induced cardiac arrest while the animals were anesthetized and on a ventilator. After cardiac arrest was confirmed, they removed the animals from the ventilator. One hour after the pigs died, the anesthesia and ventilation restarted. The researchers connected some of the pigs to OrganEX via a femoral vein or artery. They perfused the body for 6 hours, while controlling the perfusion of organs in real time. They compared the OrganEX group to 3 control groups left without intervention for several hours and another experimental group, connected to another perfusion system called ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation system), a machine used in hospitals to help patients whose lungs and/or heart have stopped functioning. While the ECMO system failed, the organEX system successfully restored systemic circulation and normalized physiological and metabolic parameters across the pigs’ whole body. As a result, the OrganEx group did not display postmortem rigidity or the pale color characteristic of a dead body. These remarkable findings demonstrate that cellular death can be halted and recovery achieved, even after prolonged cessation of blood flow in a large mammal. However, it is important to clarify that whereas organ function in the body was revived, reviving brain function was not attempted in the study.
What are the potential applications of the technology?
The technology could lead to substantial improvement in organ transplantation, as OrganEX could extend the viability of an organ after a person dies, thus increasing organ availability for transplantation. The results are also promising for clinical resuscitation science, but the authors caution that future studies and many more steps in the process need to be completed to include the recovery of brain function.
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/cardiac_surgery_operating_room.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="22095" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/17/study-revives-cell-function-in-the-body-of-dead-pigs/cardiac_surgery_operating_room/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/cardiac_surgery_operating_room.jpg" data-orig-size="1237,705" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="cardiac_surgery_operating_room" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/cardiac_surgery_operating_room.jpg?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/cardiac_surgery_operating_room.jpg?w=863" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/cardiac_surgery_operating_room.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-22095" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/cardiac_surgery_operating_room.jpg?w=1024 1024w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/cardiac_surgery_operating_room.jpg?w=150 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/cardiac_surgery_operating_room.jpg?w=300 300w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/cardiac_surgery_operating_room.jpg?w=768 768w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/cardiac_surgery_operating_room.jpg 1237w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"> Photo credit: Pfree2014, CC BY-SA 4.0 <<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0" target="_blank">https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0</a>>, via Wikimedia Commons</figcaption></figure>
Some ethical issues
Although the brains lacked electrical activity, jerking of head and neck was observed, and only in the OrganEx pigs, after animals were injected with an agent to visualize their brains. Although it is possible that the movements were initiated without the involvement of the brain, the authors acknowledge that thoughtful evaluations are needed, in concert with ethical oversight, to better understand these effects.
 Andrijevic, D. et al. Nature <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05016-1">https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05016-1</a> (2022).
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<title>Why study whiskers in mice? Humans don’t have whiskers</title>
<link>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/</link>
<comments>https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/#respond</comments>
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<pubDate>Wed, 10 Aug 2022 17:35:56 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Science News]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[#InMice]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal models]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[animal research]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[mice]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[whiskers]]></category>
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<description><![CDATA[Sometimes an exciting research finding is quickly attacked by the internet because it was done #InMice. But some of the most exciting discoveries have resulted from studies  #InMice. And some things #InMice, like their lungs, hearts, livers, and bladders, are surprisingly more similar to humans than we may assume. It’s also just fun to learn … <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/" class="more-link">Continue reading Why study whiskers in mice? Humans don’t have whiskers</a>]]></description>
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Sometimes an exciting research finding is quickly attacked by the internet because it was done #InMice. But some of the most exciting discoveries have resulted from studies  #InMice. And some things #InMice, like their lungs, hearts, livers, and bladders, <a href="https://speakingofresearch.com/facts/the-animal-model/">are surprisingly more similar to humans than we may assume</a>. It’s also just fun to learn about how other animals have adapted to their unique environments. It may just even open our eyes to understanding the world from their point of view.
<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/mousewhiskers750.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="22076" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/mousewhiskers750/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/mousewhiskers750.jpg" data-orig-size="750,500" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="mousewhiskers750" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/mousewhiskers750.jpg?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/mousewhiskers750.jpg?w=750" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/mousewhiskers750.jpg?w=750" alt="" class="wp-image-22076" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/mousewhiskers750.jpg 750w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/mousewhiskers750.jpg?w=150 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/mousewhiskers750.jpg?w=300 300w" sizes="(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Source: <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://news.berkeley.edu/2017/06/27/a-mouses-view-of-the-world-seen-through-its-whiskers/" target="_blank">UC Berkeley News</a></figcaption></figure></div>
Let’s consider whiskers, for example. You may have noticed the whiskers on your dog, cat, or even your pet mouse. Those long and thick hairs on their snouts give them greater ability to touch and feel things close to their face. Imagine you are trying to walk through your home with a blind-fold on. If you aren’t blind, you’ll immediately put up your hands to feel your way to the bathroom or refrigerator. You’re using your hands as whiskers. 
<figure data-carousel-extra='{"blog_id":3150406,"permalink":"https:\/\/speakingofresearch.com\/2022\/08\/10\/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers\/"}' class="wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/tabby_cat_with_blue_eyes-3336579.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="22052" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/tabby_cat_with_blue_eyes-3336579/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/tabby_cat_with_blue_eyes-3336579.jpg" data-orig-size="499,599" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="tabby_cat_with_blue_eyes-3336579" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/tabby_cat_with_blue_eyes-3336579.jpg?w=250" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/tabby_cat_with_blue_eyes-3336579.jpg?w=499" data-id="22052" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/tabby_cat_with_blue_eyes-3336579.jpg?w=499" alt="" class="wp-image-22052" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/tabby_cat_with_blue_eyes-3336579.jpg 499w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/tabby_cat_with_blue_eyes-3336579.jpg?w=125 125w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/tabby_cat_with_blue_eyes-3336579.jpg?w=250 250w" sizes="(max-width: 499px) 100vw, 499px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The cat has long whiskers in nice and neat rows below their nose. You can also see them above their eyes and below their ears. Source: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tabby_cat_with_blue_eyes-3336579.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a></figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/dog_canis_lupus_familiaris_7.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="22051" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/dog_canis_lupus_familiaris_7/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/dog_canis_lupus_familiaris_7.jpg" data-orig-size="800,450" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="dog_canis_lupus_familiaris_7" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/dog_canis_lupus_familiaris_7.jpg?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/dog_canis_lupus_familiaris_7.jpg?w=800" data-id="22051" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/dog_canis_lupus_familiaris_7.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-22051" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/dog_canis_lupus_familiaris_7.jpg 800w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/dog_canis_lupus_familiaris_7.jpg?w=150 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/dog_canis_lupus_familiaris_7.jpg?w=300 300w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/dog_canis_lupus_familiaris_7.jpg?w=768 768w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The whiskers in this dog are very subtle, but they’re located at the small black dots in nice and neat rows on the snout, below the nose. Source: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dog_(Canis_lupus_familiaris)_(7).jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a></figcaption></figure>
</figure>
But how is that touch information being processed in the brain? Does it work the same way in humans as it does in mice? The short answer is, yes. In every mammal, you can look at the outer portion of their brain and find an area specific to the sense of touch. It was discovered in humans in the 1920s when Wilder Penfield, a Canadian neurosurgeon, <a href="https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2018/1/26/16932476/wilder-penfield-brain-surgery-epilepsy-google-doodle">electrically stimulated his patients’ brains to locate the areas causing seizures</a>. Here, Penfield kept his patients awake and they would report back to him what they felt or if their arm moved, for example. When Penfield stimulated one area of the brain, called the somatosensory cortex, it was as if someone was touching their hands.
But it wasn’t just the hands, soon scientists discovered an entire map of the body in the somatosensory cortex. Interestingly some areas for the lips and hands were larger than for the legs and feet. This larger size also coincided with people being able to more easily discriminate two points on their skin. You can try it yourself. Take two pens and place the tips on your leg a few inches apart. Then close your eyes and move the pen tips closer to one another. Soon it will feel like there is only one pen tip touching you, but when you open your eyes you’ll see that they are pretty far apart. Now try the same thing with your upper lip in the mirror. You’ll quickly learn that you can get the pen tips far closer to one another before they feel like one when you touch your upper lip than when you touch your leg. That’s because a larger portion of your somatosensory cortex is dedicated to your lips than your legs, which is depicted in the homunculus (the image below).
<figure data-carousel-extra='{"blog_id":3150406,"permalink":"https:\/\/speakingofresearch.com\/2022\/08\/10\/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers\/"}' class="wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-3 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/54-6wrightesupp1-1.jpeg"><img data-attachment-id="22059" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/54-6wrightesupp1-1/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/54-6wrightesupp1-1.jpeg" data-orig-size="1520,2279" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"7.1","credit":"","camera":"ILCE-6000","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1565884935","copyright":"","focal_length":"35","iso":"3200","shutter_speed":"0.033333333333333","title":"","orientation":"1"}" data-image-title="54-6wrightesupp1-1" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/54-6wrightesupp1-1.jpeg?w=200" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/54-6wrightesupp1-1.jpeg?w=683" data-id="22059" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/54-6wrightesupp1-1.jpeg?w=683" alt="" class="wp-image-22059" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/54-6wrightesupp1-1.jpeg?w=683 683w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/54-6wrightesupp1-1.jpeg?w=1366 1366w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/54-6wrightesupp1-1.jpeg?w=100 100w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/54-6wrightesupp1-1.jpeg?w=200 200w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/54-6wrightesupp1-1.jpeg?w=768 768w" sizes="(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The female homunculus. Source: <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://direct.mit.edu/leon/article-abstract/54/6/653/97296/The-Missing-Female-Homunculus?redirectedFrom=fulltext" target="_blank">MIT Press Direct</a></figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/side-black.gif"><img data-attachment-id="22058" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/side-black/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/side-black.gif" data-orig-size="800,930" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="side-black" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/side-black.gif?w=258" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/side-black.gif?w=800" data-id="22058" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/side-black.gif?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-22058" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The male homunculus. Source: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cortical_homunculus#/media/File:Front_of_Sensory_Homunculus.gif" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Wikipedia</a></figcaption></figure>
<figcaption class="blocks-gallery-caption wp-element-caption">These are images of a female and male homunculus, which are 3D projections of the female and male sensory systems. The larger hands, lips, and tongue represent the larger areas of the brain the body parts occupy in the somatosensory cortex.</figcaption></figure>
Okay, but how does this all relate to whiskers? Well, the sensory nerve that connects your lips to your brain is actually the same nerve that connects whiskers to a mouse’s brain (i.e., the infraorbital nerve). And, the area of the somatosensory cortex dedicated to the mouse’s whiskers is HUGE compared to the rest of its body. Just like our upper lip. Thus, even though the whiskers don’t look like lips, studying them can reveal how your own somatosensory cortex develops and learns.
But, yeah, whiskers don’t look like lips, and that’s the cool part. Every one of those whiskers actually has its own specific area in the somatosensory area called a barrel, and each barrel maps back to the whiskers in the same identical area. The map in the brain is the same as the map on the face. This allows scientists to study how unique changes in whisker A1 can alter barrel A1, and how it may alter barrels A2 and B1. 
<figure data-carousel-extra='{"blog_id":3150406,"permalink":"https:\/\/speakingofresearch.com\/2022\/08\/10\/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers\/"}' class="wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-5 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631mousebody.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="22063" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/631mousebody/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631mousebody.jpg" data-orig-size="300,298" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="631mousebody" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631mousebody.jpg?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631mousebody.jpg?w=300" data-id="22063" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631mousebody.jpg?w=300" alt="" class="wp-image-22063" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631mousebody.jpg 300w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631mousebody.jpg?w=150 150w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></a></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="22064" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/attachment/631/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631.jpg" data-orig-size="530,353" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="631" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631.jpg?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631.jpg?w=530" data-id="22064" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631.jpg?w=530" alt="" class="wp-image-22064" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631.jpg 530w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631.jpg?w=150 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/631.jpg?w=300 300w" sizes="(max-width: 530px) 100vw, 530px" /></a></figure>
<figcaption class="blocks-gallery-caption wp-element-caption">On the left is an image of a mouseunculus. Each oval below in the eye in the “WT body map”, or wild-type body map, represents one whisker. To the right there is a cKO body map, where scientists knocked-out (KO) a gene important for normal development of the somatosensory cortex, Pax6. You can also see the barrels or ovals in the picture on the right, representing each whisker in the snout of the mouse. Source: <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.salk.edu/news-release/novel-top-down-mechanism-repatterns-developing-brain-regions/" target="_blank">Salk Institute</a></figcaption></figure>
What’s even cooler is that even if all rodents have whiskers, they use their somatosensory areas in different ways depending on how they have adapted to their environment. Star-nosed moles, for example, have star-arms in their somatosensory cortex instead of barrels. The somatosensory cortex of naked mole-rats is largely occupied by their teeth. Sea lions have whiskers that look like drills, helping them to chase down fish in the water. And every hair on a manatee is actually a whisker that maps to their somatosensory cortex. Could you imagine having a star-nose that can feel like your fingers, or having sensory hairs all over your body like a manatee? Not all research needs to benefit human health, sometimes it can open our eyes to new solutions to problems. Just look at how <a href="https://www.whoi.edu/oceanus/feature/seal-whiskers-inspire-marine-technology/">sea lion whiskers inspired new marine technology.</a>
<figure data-carousel-extra='{"blog_id":3150406,"permalink":"https:\/\/speakingofresearch.com\/2022\/08\/10\/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers\/"}' class="wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-7 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/screenshot-2022-08-10-at-1.20.34-pm.png"><img data-attachment-id="22072" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/screenshot-2022-08-10-at-1-20-34-pm/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/screenshot-2022-08-10-at-1.20.34-pm.png" data-orig-size="318,211" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="screenshot-2022-08-10-at-1.20.34-pm" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/screenshot-2022-08-10-at-1.20.34-pm.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/screenshot-2022-08-10-at-1.20.34-pm.png?w=318" data-id="22072" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/screenshot-2022-08-10-at-1.20.34-pm.png?w=318" alt="" class="wp-image-22072" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/screenshot-2022-08-10-at-1.20.34-pm.png 318w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/screenshot-2022-08-10-at-1.20.34-pm.png?w=150 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/screenshot-2022-08-10-at-1.20.34-pm.png?w=300 300w" sizes="(max-width: 318px) 100vw, 318px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">star-nosed-moleunculus. Source: <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/pdf/S0960-9822(05)01230-3.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Current Biology</a></figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/whisker-close_391697.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="22069" data-permalink="https://speakingofresearch.com/2022/08/10/why-study-whiskers-in-mice-humans-dont-have-whiskers/whisker-close_391697/" data-orig-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/whisker-close_391697.jpg" data-orig-size="700,450" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="whisker-close_391697" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/whisker-close_391697.jpg?w=300" data-large-file="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/whisker-close_391697.jpg?w=700" data-id="22069" src="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/whisker-close_391697.jpg?w=700" alt="" class="wp-image-22069" srcset="https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/whisker-close_391697.jpg 700w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/whisker-close_391697.jpg?w=150 150w, https://speakingofresearch.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/whisker-close_391697.jpg?w=300 300w" sizes="(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px" /></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">close-up image of the shape of harbor seal whiskers. Source: <a href="https://journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/213/15/2665/9733/Harbor-seal-vibrissa-morphology-suppresses-vortex" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal of Experimental Biology</a></figcaption></figure>
</figure>
If you would like to know more about whiskers and the fascinating sensory worlds of other animals, check out Ed Yong’s recent book, “<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/616914/an-immense-world-by-ed-yong/">An Immense World</a>” or Professor Kenneth Catania’s book on “<a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691195254/great-adaptations">Great Adaptations</a>”.
Justin Varholick  
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