Animal experimentation: historical overview and perspectives

Abstract

Every year, millions of vertebrate animals are used worldwide in scientific research. Although many countries have already, for decades, legislation regulating experiments with animals, there was a legal gap in Brazil. In this context, a historical and comparative overview of Brazilian normative situation was drawn up. The reference used was the Law 11,794/08, the first legislation specifically regulating experiments with animal in the country. The Law established the adoption of research practices that value animal wellbeing by reducing suffering and the number of specimens used, aligning to the "3Rs" concept. The effects of the new regulation will only be observed in some years from now, when the entire regulatory system is implemented and generated statistical data are available for analysis. Still, it is clear that the Law 11.794/08 represents a major advance in the face of the incorporation of guiding principles aimed at animal wellbeing and the previously existing legal vacuum.