Recommendations for Addressing Harm-Benefit Analysis and Implementation in Ethical Evaluation - Report from the AALAS-FELASA Working Group on Harm-Benefit Analysis - Part 2.

International regulations and guidelines strongly suggest that the use of animal models in scientific research should be initiated only after the authority responsible for the review of animal studies has concluded a well-thought-out harm-benefit analysis (HBA) and deemed the project to be appropriate. The AALAS-FELASA working group on HBA has performed a literature review and based on this review, proposed a method for HBA. Examples of the working group's approach are included in this report.

Current concepts of Harm-Benefit Analysis of Animal Experiments - Report from the AALAS-FELASA Working Group on Harm-Benefit Analysis - Part 1.

International regulations and guidelines strongly suggest that the use of animal models in scientific research should be initiated only after the authority responsible for the review of animal studies has concluded a well-thought-out harm-benefit analysis (HBA) and deemed the project to be appropriate. Although the process for conducting HBAs may not be new, the relevant factors and algorithms used in conducting them during the review process are deemed to be poorly defined or lacking by committees in many institutions. This paper presents the current concept of HBAs based on a literature review.

The evolution and adoption of standards used by AAALAC.

The Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International (AAALAC) has operated its accreditation program for more than 45 y by using the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (the Guide) as a basic guide in the generation of accreditation standards. AAALAC supplements its reliance on the Guide with a number of documents, referred to as reference resources, that undergo a formal review and adoption process by AAALAC. Two reference resources have grown in importance to the accreditation process over the past decade as institutions from outside of the United States have increasingly sought accreditation and as greater numbers of agricultural animals are used in research programs.

Septicemia and peritonitis in a colony of common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) secondary to Klebsiella pneumoniae infection.

Six common marmosets from a colony of 50 died over a period of 3 weeks, with the predominant finding of gram-negative bacterial septicemia. Four of these animals died peracutely; the other two were found when they were moribund, and they subsequently died despite clinical intervention. Gram-negative bacterial rods were present in the blood vessels of stained tissues from five of the six marmosets.