Statement on experimental animals
El Cajal Institute is one of the 152 entities adhered to the Agreement on Transparency in Animal Experimentation promoted by the Confederation of Spanish Scientific Societies (COSCE) with the collaboration of the European Association for Animal Research (EARA), and which was launched on September 20, 2016 with the aim of establishing channels of communication between the scientific community and society that allow understanding how and why animals are used in research, and the benefits derived from this practice..
The agreement commits the signatory organizations to share information in a transparent manner and to promote communication about animal research, in order to provide the public with all the information about the reasons, methods and advances in knowledge that make the use of animals in scientific research essential and necessary.
Why are animals necessary in research?
Foundation for Biomedical Research
At the Cajal Institute we are fully aware of the crucial role that animal research plays in the understanding of the biological mechanisms involved in diseases and in the development of medical treatments.. Without the use of animals, we would not have most of the medicines, antibiotics, vaccines and surgical techniques used in human and veterinary medicine..
An important part of the scientific work carried out by the Cajal Institute that contributes to the improvement of people's lives (studies of neurodegeneration and diseases of the nervous system, for example), requires the use of animals.
Animal welfare for quality science
The welfare of experimental animals is a fundamental concern for the Instituto Cajal, as well as the strict respect for and compliance with current legislation on the protection of animals used in experimentation and other scientific purposes, including teaching.
Our goal is to achieve the highest standards of animal care, protection and comfort, not only from the point of view of moral responsibility for them, but also for the very fact that it would be impossible to develop quality science without guaranteeing animal welfare.
Our animal research complies with legal standards, and is reviewed prior to initiation by an Animal Experimentation Ethics Committee that promotes the use of alternative methods, the reduction of the number of animals used and the refinement of experimental procedures. No research project requiring the use of animals should begin without the mandatory ethical evaluation and final approval by the competent authority in the Community of Madrid.
A transparent procedure with all the guarantees
The Cajal Institute ensures that both the personnel in charge of the animals and the researchers involved in projects that need them as experimental models have the mandatory training and knowledge required, and for this purpose provides and facilitates all the resources for the proper maintenance of experimental animals in terms of acilities, maintenance, welfare and veterinary care..
The Cajal Institute is constantly working to improve the knowledge of its members about the processes of transparency in the use of animals, and supports ports initiatives of openness and accountability in animal experimentation aimed at society (interventions in the media, outreach seminars, open days, etc.).
Transparency Program Cajal Institute
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