Animal use in experimental neuropathology: Provisions for animal welfare and ethics

In the Netherlands each year 50-60.000 vertebrate animals are used for stud ying aspects of neuropathological disorders. Worldwide probably more than 1 0 million animals are used per year in this field of research. In most coun tries legislation has been adopted as to regulate the use of animals for th ese and other experimental purposes. The legislative regulations include pr ovisions on the care and welfare of laboratory animals, on the use of alter natives or on alleviation of pain and distress. A major provision is that p ersons who are involved in animal experimentation must be competent. In som e countries the establishment of an animal ethics committee has been made m andatory by law. In the Netherlands the first of these committees have been established more than a decade ago. Their work in evaluating the ethical a nd biotechnical aspects of the experimental design is generally valued by t he scientific community. A most critical aspect of the experimental design is the choice of a proper animal model. In the field of experimental neurop athology much research on validation is still needed. The standards of anim al-based research can be further improved through a well-considered and str ictly implemented animal welfare policy of editorial boards. The need for a nimal models as a substitute for man will probably decrease in the future, mainly as a consequence of the revolutionizing developments in molecular bi otechnology.