In response to the undercover video from the BPRC, member of Parliament Wassenberg from the Party for the Animals has asked questions. Minister van Engelshoven (Minister of Education, Culture and Science) has answered these questions, also on behalf of the Minister of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (responsible for the use of animals for scientific purposes). You can read these questions and answers (in Dutch only) by following this link.
The BPRC Alternative Methods Unit often works with culture systems for certain types of brain cells known as microglia. We grow these cells using brain matter from dead animals. In this way, we are able to chart the so-called immunological reactions in the brain. It is important to note here that no animals are ‘sacrificed’ to obtain the tissue that we use, which is purely residual material.
'Tuberculosis is a disaster happening every day without being noticed, because nothing really changes. It's as bad today as it is tomorrow. So any vaccine that will have an effect against developing open lung TB in adults, or even against TB infection in people that have not yet developed TB disease or infection, can be a game changer.'
Researchers at BPRC studying differences among marmosets fed different diets have shown that dietary changes affect MS-like symptoms in common marmosets.
Common marmosets are similar in many ways to humans, one being that they have a comparable immune system. This makes them a suitable animal model in the search for therapies for serious immunological diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS).
Infectious disease in top 10 of all mortality causes worldwide
21 September was World Alzheimer's Day. In that same week news was announced about blood tests for Alzheimer's that would be available within the next one or two years. “I have two things to say about that”, says Ingrid Philippens, a researcher of neurodegenerative disorders (Parkinson's and Alzheimer's).
Before discussing the latest developments, we should have a brief look at the bigger picture. What is the status of Alzheimer's research in 2018? What do we know, and what don't we know yet?
The Biomedical Primate Research Institute is a scientific research institute committed to biomedical research on life-threatening or debilitating diseases for man. BPRC contributes to the identification and development of new therapies and medicines. BPRC uses non-human primates for this critical research only when there are no suitable alternatives. In addition, BPRC has an active and expanding program to develop alternatives, following the principles of reduction, refinement and replacement.
Even today in 2018, AIDS continues to be a very serious disease. More than 33 million people have been infected with the HIV virus that causes AIDS, and another 1.6 million were diagnosed in 2016. Nonetheless, a great deal of progress has been achieved over the years, particularly in keeping the disease under control. These results are thanks in part to the chimpanzees used for biomedical research, though use of these primates as laboratory animals has been prohibited since 2006
New culture systems for certain types of brain cell
The death of nerve cells in the brain is responsible for diseases likes Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, also referred to as ‘neurodegenerative diseases’. This fact originally prompted much research to focus on these nerve cells. However, in recent years, it has become increasingly clear that a different cell type plays a key role in disease progression: the brain's immune cells, or ‘microglia’.
In recent years, biomedical research carried out in Europe has seen fewer and fewer experiments performed on monkeys. This trend may result in this type of research being conducted more often outside Europe in the future – for instance, in China. Today, a prominent academic journal entitled The Scientist published an article about experiments involving monkeys being transferred to countries outside Europe.
