Alternatives to animal testing. Toxicological and pharmacological aspects [TIERVERSUCHE - ERGANZUNGS- UND ERSATZMETHODEN. PHARMAKOLOGISCHE UND TOXIKOLOGISCHE ASPEKTE]

Abstract

The increasing variety and large number of chemicals (including drugs) introduced to both the market and the environment each year result in requirements for the protection of human health and human environment. These necessitated the monitoring of environmental materials and specimen banking as well as the development of rapid and reliable methods for toxicity evaluation and risk assessment. Ethical and legal aspects e.g animal protection laws, must also be taken into account. This is true also in drug research. In the last years the use of animals in biological experiments has become an issue of intensive mostly controversial, public discussion. Furthermore in the last decades many alternatives to animal testing were developed in the sense of RRR (Refine, Reduce, Replace) Nevertheless it is not possible to give up approved and reliable methods, before there are equivalent, validated alternatives. Up to now alternatives to animal testing cannot replace in total currently used toxicological and pharmacological tests with mammals. They can, however, diminish investigations with mammals as well as limit or eliminate pain and damage during animal experimentation, and allow the setting of priority and toxicity categories and target organs of toxicity. In the following an overview is given of the basics of toxicology and pharmacology, as well as the state-of-the-art of methods and alternatives, especially on the field of drug research.