Question

Your task is to write a paragraph (maximum length of one page double spaced) that analyzes one of the following environmental ethical issue. You choose which issue to write about; in this assignment, reflect deeply on a topic that matters to you. You must argue your position with ethical theory and also show how your position is stronger than the opposing position supported by another theory.

Option A:

Should animals be used in medical research? In your response, consider which kind of animals (if any) would be morally permissible to use in medical research and what consideration should be given regarding pain.

explain the theory and demonstrate how your position reflects the logic and reasoning of that theory.

Remember that theory is the “why” behind your beliefs.

Answer 1

Animals, from the fruit fly to the mouse, are widely used in scientific research. They are crucial for allowing scientists to learn more about human biology and health, and for developing new medicines.

The use of animals in scientific research has long been the subject of heated debate. On the one hand, it is considered morally wrong to use animals in this way solely for human benefit.

On the other hand, removing animals completely from the lab would impede our understanding of health and disease, and consequently affect the development of new and vital treatments. Although sometimes these studies do reduce the quality of life of these animals, thorough regulations are in place to ensure that they are carried out humanely.

To help minimize the harm animals may experience while being studied in the laboratory, researchers are required to follow a set of principles, the ‘three Rs’. These are:

• Replace Replacing, where possible, experiments using animals with alternative techniques such as cell culture, computer modeling or human volunteers instead of animals.
• Reduce: Reducing the number of animals used, by improving experimental techniques and sharing information with other researchers so that the same experiments aren’t being done by many people.
• Refine: Refining the way the animals are cared for to help minimize any stress or pain, by using less invasive techniques where possible and improving medical care and living conditions.

Animals are used in research when there is a need to find out what happens in the whole, living body, which is far more complex than the sum of its parts. It is difficult, and in most cases simply not yet possible, to replace the use of living animals in research with alternative methods.

There are four main reasons why animals are used in research:

1. Adding to scientific knowledge through basic biological research helps us understand how living things work, and apply that understanding for the benefit of both humans and animals. The study of animals is a vital part of this research process. Many basic cell processes are the same in all animals, and the bodies of animals are like humans in the way that they perform many vital functions such as breathing, digestion, movement, sight, hearing, and reproduction. To treat disease, doctors and scientists must understand how healthy body works. This, in turn, leads to an understanding of what happens to the body when we fall ill and how this can be put right.
2. Humans and animals share hundreds of illnesses, and consequently, animals can act as models for the study of human illness. For example, rabbits suffer from atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), as well as diseases such as emphysema, and birth defects such as spina bifida. Dogs suffer from cancer, diabetes, cataracts, ulcers and bleeding disorders such as hemophilia, which make them natural candidates for research into these disorders. Cats suffer from some of the same visual impairments as humans. From such models, we learn how the disease affects the body, how the immune system responds, who will be affected, and more.
3. Once researchers learn more about a particular disease, animals are used to develop and test these potential therapies as part of the applied research process. For example, medicines for Parkinson's disease have been developed using animal models with induced Parkinson's-like symptoms. Models such as these are an essential part of applying biological research to real medical problems, allowing new targets for disease intervention to be identified. Data from animal studies are essential before new therapeutic techniques and surgical procedures can be tested on human patients.
4. New medicines require testing because researchers must measure both the beneficial and the harmful effects of a compound on a whole organism. A medicine is initially tested in vitro using tissues and isolated organs, but legally and ethically it must also be tested in a suitable animal model before clinical trials in humans can take place.

Scientists use animals to learn more about health problems that affect both humans and animals, and to assure the safety of new medical treatments. Some of these problems involve processes that can only be studied in a living organism. Scientists study animals when there is no alternative and it is impractical or unethical to study humans.

Animals are good research subjects for a variety of reasons. They are biologically similar to humans and susceptible to many of the same health problems. Also, they have short life-cycles so they can easily be studied throughout their whole life-span or across several generations. In addition, scientists can control the environment around the animal (diet, temperature, lighting, etc.), which would be difficult to do with people. However, the most important reason why animals are used is that it would be wrong to deliberately expose human beings to health risks in order to observe the course of a disease.

Animals are needed in research to develop drugs and medical procedures to treat diseases. Scientists may discover such drugs and procedures using research methods that do not involve animals. If the new therapy seems promising, it is then tested in animals to see whether it seems to be safe and effective. If the results of the animal studies are favorable, human volunteers are asked to take part in a clinical trial. The animal studies are done first to give medical researchers a better idea of what benefits and complications they are likely to see in humans.