Estimates of canine and feline euthanasia at U.S. animal shelters--largely based on voluntary surveys with low response rates--make it difficult to estimate the population from which the euthanized animals derive. Estimates of euthanasia rates (animals euthanized per unit of population) have varied widely and been available only sporadically. This study used requirements of Michigan state law (Pet Shops, Dog Pounds, and Animal Shelters Act, 1969) for animal shelters to collect admission and discharge data for all 176 Michigan-licensed animal shelters. In 2003, Michigan shelters discharged 140,653 dogs: Of these, 56,972 (40%) were euthanized; 40,005 (28%) were adopted. This annual euthanasia rate is 2.6% of the estimated 2003 Michigan dog population. Michigan shelters discharged 134,405 cats in 2003: 76,321 (57%) by euthanasia and (24%) by adoption. The estimated ratio of euthanized cats to cats who had owners was 3.1%. Small shelters and privately owned shelters were associated with higher adoption rates. Comparison with historical information from the past 10 to 20 years suggests the number of companion animals being euthanized in shelters has decreased and that progress has been made in reducing the companion animal overpopulation problem.
Through the years, scientists and technicians, within their laboratories, trained individuals new to animal research. In the mid-1980s, new and revised laws/guidelines for animal research, including training, were instituted. The process of training scientists, technicians and students is recognised as essential for animal welfare and good science. Under the current and future revisions of the mandates, training must include specific topics. Training must include details of various regulations and guidelines, proper handling and care for animals, proper pre-procedural and post-procedural care of animals, aseptic surgical methods and procedures, proper use of anaesthetics, analgesics and tranquilisers, methods whereby deficiencies in animal care and treatment are reported, and a search for alternatives to the use of animals. Training individuals in clinical techniques (injection, blood collection, anaesthesia, etc.) is critical for humane treatment of animals, safety for the trainee and reliable animal data for the scientific project. Written materials about the clinical techniques should be provided at the training session, and training records must be kept.
Abstract. Immunotherapies using autologous whole tumor cell vaccines have great potential in the treatment of cancer. Very few studies report the use of cryotreatment for the preparation of cells in cell-based vaccines. In this study, we demonstrated that a preparation containing cryotreated human breast cancer cells has the same capacity as a preparation containing irradiated human breast cancer cells to induce the activation of immune cells in vivo. The vaccine strategy proposed in this study may provide the experiment basis for the use of autologous or allogeneic breast cancer cells in the cell-based vaccine approach for the treatment of breast cancer and other types of cancer as well. IntroductionBreast cancer is the most frequently occurring malignant disease in women and the second leading cause of cancer deaths in women in many of the regions of the world. According to the World Health Organization, >1.2 million people will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year worldwide. Although tumorectomy, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and hormone replacement therapy have been used successfully for the treatment of breast cancer, the limits of these existing treatment regimes for breast cancer are recognized. There are few effective therapeutic choices for patients with invasive and metastatic breast cancer (1,2). It is evident that novel therapeutic modalities for breast cancer need to be developed in order to eliminate residual circulating cancer cells and micrometastases.New therapies utilizing the immune system have proved effective in treating patients with advanced breast cancer (3-11). Cancer vaccine immunotherapy is certainly one of the most promising methods in cancer immunotherapy (8,12). Vaccination of cancer patients with autologous or allogeneic tumor cell-based vaccines has proved to be safe and elicit anticancer immune responses in clinical trials with patients affected by different types of malignancies (13-17). However some limitations have to be overcome before cell-based vaccine can be accepted as a new treatment for cancer. One of the limitations is the method used to prepare the cells. Irradiation is the common technique used to prepare cells in cancer cell-based vaccines, but its use necessitates expensive equipment and qualified personnel that are not always accessible. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate if a simpler, less expensive and faster method could replace irradiation. We investigated whether cells prepared by cryotreatment would be as efficient as cells prepared by the commonly used irradiation technique to induce an immune response in a nude mouse model. Materials and methodsCell lines. The human breast carcinoma cancer cell line MCF-7 was purchased from the American Type Culture Collection. Cells were maintained in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (Gibco-Invitrogen, Grand Island, NY) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (BioMedia, Drummondville, Quebec, Canada), 50 μg/ml gentamycine (Gibco-Invitrogen) and 2 mM L-glutamine (Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO). The cul...
In many countries, training for individuals working with research animals has been mandated for more than 30 years. Required training topics include methods for the proper handling of animals, anaesthesia, surgery, euthanasia, non-surgical procedures (e.g. injections, oral dosing, blood collection), and recognition of animal illness and pain. During training sessions, the instructor, as a role model, should encourage an attitude of respect and kindness toward the animals. By honouring and modelling these values, instructors can expect minimal distress for the laboratory animals during procedures, prompt reporting of unexpected adverse consequences in animals to the veterinarian and the animal care committee, and a strong interest in considering alternatives.
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