According to their legislative mandate, animal testing commissions approve research projects only when they adhere to the 3R principles (“replace, reduce, refine”). If the research problem can be addressed using alternative approaches (“replace”), the project is rejected. If the testing is not or only partially replaceable, the number of animals must be kept as low as possible (“reduce”) and the suffering inflicted on them must be kept to a minimum (“refine”).
The SNSF supports the 3R principles through its emphasis on the scientific quality of the funded research projects. Today, the majority of projects involving animal testing also employ alternative methods such as cell cultures or computer simulations – the most common alternatives to animal testing at present. Many of the projects funded by the SNSF in biology and medicine use no animal testing at all.
Developing new methods is not the SNSF’s main concern. Its funding activities are focused on hypothesis-driven research. Alternatives to animal testing may be discovered in the context of such research work. To advance the targeted development of 3R methods, the Federal government, the Swiss higher education institutions and the private sector jointly finance the 3R Competence Centre (3RCC), which was previously funded by the 3R Research Foundation.
Although most biomedical researchers also use other methods, animal testing is indispensable in understanding health and disease in living systems. The complex interplay of different tissues, cell types and signalling pathways can often only be understood at the level of the whole organism. This research towards a fundamental understanding of life thus forms the knowledge base for the development of drugs and therapies over a period of many years. These therapies may only be tested in humans after the legally prescribed animal testing.
In addition to the primary benefits for humans, animal testing also increases knowledge of species protection and behavioural biology, and enables optimised husbandry and breeding conditions for farm animals as well as treatment options for pets.
The ethical trade-offs between the probable suffering of experimental animals and the expected benefits for humans are assessed by the cantonal animal testing commissions. They are made up of members who are independent of the applicants: experts on the keeping of animals, animal protectionists, researchers and laypeople. In contrast, the SNSF Research Council is composed exclusively of active researchers who judge the scientific quality of research proposals. The composition of the animal testing commissions therefore better represents the values of society.
The SNSF deliberately refrains from making its own additional ethical assessment of the animal testing. This dual, independent assessment of all animal testing guarantees both scientific quality and fulfilment of the prescribed criteria for animal welfare and complies with the legal mandates of both institutions.
Animal testing in Switzerland is very strictly regulated compared with the rest of the world. Researchers must demonstrate to the cantonal animal testing commissions that the expected gain in scientific knowledge justifies any suffering caused. Researchers and animal carers must complete a specific training course and attend annual continuing education courses, and must issue a yearly report to the cantonal veterinary office on the use of all experimental animals. Researchers must also adhere to the ethical guidelines of the Ethics Committee for Animal Experimentation of the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences (SAMS) and the Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT).
All animal testing conducted in Switzerland using vertebrates, cephalopods and crayfish requires a permit and is reported in the annual statistics of the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (BLV). All animal testing is assigned a grade of severity from 0 (e.g. for observational studies) to 3 for severe stress (e.g. implanting aggressive tumours). The majority of animals (over 60 percent) are used in basic research and are mainly subject to no or very little stress (severity grades 0 and 1 together over 70 percent).
(“YES to the ban on animal and human experiments – YES to research methods promoting safety and progress”)
Acceptance of the initiative to ban all animal experiments would hugely restrict biomedical research in Switzerland. Animal experiments remain essential for developing new drug therapies, and cannot be replaced in all cases by alternative methods. If animal experiments and clinical trials were banned completely, Switzerland would soon be left behind by international research. Consequently, the SNSF is joining with swissuniversities in opposing the initiative.
On a global comparison, animal testing is strictly regulated in Switzerland. Researchers must demonstrate to the cantonal animal testing commission that the expected knowledge gain outweighs the suffering caused. Both researchers and animal carers must attend basic training as well as annual refresher courses and must report each year to the cantonal veterinary offices on all animals used for experimentation. Any unavoidable pain and distress must be alleviated.
The SNSF selects the best research projects with the help of international experts. These stringent quality criteria contribute to implementation of the "3R" principles (replace, reduce, refine). The SNSF only funds animal experiments if they are essential for resolving research problems. To specifically promote 3R methods, the federal government, together with the Swiss universities and private industry, jointly finance the Swiss 3R Competence Centre (3RCC).