Perceived Barriers to the Adoption of Alternatives to Laboratory Animal Use for Rabies Diagnosis

Abstract

The use of laboratory animals is still common practice, but some uses can be replaced by alternative methods, such as Virus Isolation in Cell Culture (VICC) instead of the Mouse Inoculation Test (MIT) for rabies diagnosis. The objective of this work was to describe current rabies diagnosis methods in Brazil and other countries, and the constraints associated with replacing this use of mice with alternative methods. Nine out of 12 Brazilian and 14 out of 43 non-Brazilian respondents reported that they currently used the MIT. Respondents in countries other than Brazil, male respondents, and those already employing in vitro methods for rabies diagnosis, expressed higher levels of support for the use of alternatives. The most frequently reported constraints associated with the use of alternatives were lack of laboratory facilities, equipment and materials (cited 17 times by respondents), and lack of financial resources (cited 15 times). The results indicate that many laboratories continue to use mice for rabies diagnosis. The proportion of laboratories that use mice appears to be especially high in Brazil, despite animal protection laws and technical guidelines that favour the use of alternatives. The barriers to the adoption of alternative methods identified in the current study provide a basis for facilitating changes in Brazil and elsewhere.

The Use of a Decision Tree Based on the Rabies Diagnosis Scenario, to Assist the Implementation of Alternatives to Laboratory Animals

“…The proposed DT offers step-by-step guidance for overcoming the barriers that may hinder the replacement of laboratory animal use, based on our previous study on the rabies diagnosis scenario (5). Although the DT was based on one specific case study, it was created to be widely applicable to other scenarios of laboratory animal use in Brazil.…”

“…The branches that derive from the Main Branch are presented in order, from the most-cited barriers to the least-cited by people working in rabies diagnosis (5) -however, such a sequence is not mandatory. Following the development of the framework, we used it to calculate the frequency of the different barriers that were mentioned by people working in the rabies diagnosis field (5).…”

“…If, after this education and training process, the staff were still resistant to change, then the laboratory should be reported to the appropriate official bodies. Resistance to change has been confirmed as barrier to the implementation of alternatives by our research group (5). In that previous study, we invited people performing the Mouse Inoculation Test (MIT) to implement Virus Isolation in Cell Culture (VICC) for rabies diagnosis in Brazil -of 41 laboratories invited to participate, only four showed interest, but none of them formally confirmed their involvement.…”

“…Full replacement of laboratory animal use should also be the final goal in Brazil; nevertheless, animals are commonly used. For rabies diagnosis, for example, the proportion of tests that use mice is higher in Brazil (75%) than in other countries (32%), and the barriers to the replacement of animal use most frequently cited by respondents were: lack of structure, equipment and materials in the laboratories; lack of financial resources; lack of human resources and professional qualifications; resistance to change; and regulatory obstacles and lack of incentive by the government (5).…”

Humane Education: The Tool for Scientific Revolution in Brazil

“…For example, in a study focusing on animal use for rabies diagnosis, the proportion of tests that used mice was higher in Brazil (75%) than in other countries (32%). Moreover, barriers to the replacement of animal use most frequently cited by respondents in a 2014 study by Bones and colleages included: lack of structure, equipment, and materials in the laboratories; lack of financial resources; lack of human resources and professional qualifications; resistance to change; regulatory obstacles, and lack of incentive by the government (Bones et al, 2014). Although this study refers to the use of animals for testing purposes, its findings on barriers to for implementing non-animal methods are indicative to other areas of animal use, including education and training.…”