The need for the creation of a Brazilian centre for the validation of alternative methods was recognised in 2008, and members of academia, industry and existing international validation centres immediately engaged with the idea. In 2012, co-operation between the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (FIOCRUZ) and the Brazilian Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) instigated the establishment of the Brazilian Center for the Validation of Alternative Methods (BraCVAM), which was officially launched in 2013. The Brazilian validation process follows OECD Guidance Document No. 34, where BraCVAM functions as the focal point to identify and/or receive requests from parties interested in submitting tests for validation. BraCVAM then informs the Brazilian National Network on Alternative Methods (RENaMA) of promising assays, which helps with prioritisation and contributes to the validation studies of selected assays. A Validation Management Group supervises the validation study, and the results obtained are peer-reviewed by an ad hoc Scientific Review Committee, organised under the auspices of BraCVAM. Based on the peer-review outcome, BraCVAM will prepare recommendations on the validated test method, which will be sent to the National Council for the Control of Animal Experimentation (CONCEA). CONCEA is in charge of the regulatory adoption of all validated test methods in Brazil, following an open public consultation.

The development and validation of scientific alternatives to animal testing is important not only from an ethical perspective (implementation of 3Rs), but also to improve safety assessment decision making with the use of mechanistic information of higher relevance to humans. To be effective in these efforts, it is however imperative that validation centres, industry, regulatory bodies, academia and other interested parties ensure a strong international cooperation, cross-sector collaboration and intense communication in the design, execution, and peer review of validation studies. Such an approach is critical to achieve harmonized and more transparent approaches to method validation, peer-review and recommendation, which will ultimately expedite the international acceptance of valid alternative methods or strategies by regulatory authorities and their implementation and use by stakeholders. It also allows achieving greater efficiency and effectiveness by avoiding duplication of effort and leveraging limited resources. In view of achieving these goals, the International Cooperation on Alternative Test Methods (ICATM) was established in 2009 by validation centres from Europe, USA, Canada and Japan. ICATM was later joined by Korea in 2011 and currently also counts with Brazil and China as observers. This chapter describes the existing differences across world regions and major efforts carried out for achieving consistent international cooperation and harmonization in the validation and adoption of alternative approaches to animal testing.

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Many Brazilian researchers have long been interested in the development and use of alternative methods. Most of their research groups work in isolation, due to the lack of funding for collaborative studies. Despite these problems, since the Third World Congress on Alternatives and Animal Use in the Life Sciences, Brazilian researchers have strongly participated, not only by presenting posters and oral presentations, but also by being involved in the World Congress Committees. The Brazilian Center for the Validation of Alternative Methods (BraCVAM) must play an important role in the development and validation of alternative methods, through the active participation of the National Network of Alternative Methods (ReNaMA). In Brazil, Law 11,794/2008 regulates the use of animals in experimentation and education, and Law 9,605/1998 clearly states that use of the original animal test is not permitted, if an alternative method is available. Therefore, given the current legal framework, it is very important that all the Ministries involved with animal use, and the organisations responsible for funding researchers, strive to increase the financial support of those groups that are involved in the development and use of alternative methods in Brazil.

Introdução:O teste de toxicidade in vivo, conhecido como Teste de Toxicidade Inespecífica (TTI), é sugerido para avaliar a segurança de produtos biológicos e derivados de biotecnologia. O princípio do teste é a administração do produto em animais, seguido por um período de observação. O Instituto Nacional de Controle de Qualidade em Saúde (INCQS) é o laboratório de controle nacional brasileiro (LCN) que controla os produtos biológicos, especialmente vacinas e soros hiperimunes, para o Programa Nacional de Imunização (PNI) antes da liberação para o mercado. São preconizados ensaios químicos, microbiológicos e toxicológicos, inclusive o TTI. Objetivo:Analisar retrospectivamente o TTI realizado no INCQS e verificar as monografias da Farmacopeia Brasileiraonde ainda é preconizado o teste. Método:Foi realizado um levantamento no sistema de dados Harpya do INCQS, para verificar os resultados satisfatórios e insatisfatórios do TTI. Resultados:No período de 1999 a 2012, foram realizados 3.453 TTI nos produtos biológicos, resultando em 100% de resultados satisfatórios. Com base nestes resultados e seguindo a tendência mundial, o INCQS vem desde 2002 reduzindo gradualmente a quantidade de produtos biológicos submetidos ao TTI. Atualmente, o risco de contaminação de produtos farmacêuticos com substâncias não específicas é significativamente baixo, pois as indústrias são reguladas para o cumprimento das boas práticas de fabricação (BPF). Embora o TTI ainda permaneça nos Testes Gerais da Farmacopeia Brasileira, ele não é requerido nas monografias específicas de soros hiperimunes e vacinas para uso humano. Conclusões: O TTI não parece ser eficiente para detectar toxicidade inespecífica em biológicos e o Brasil deve seguir a tendência mundial de interromper a sua execução.