Animal experiments in biomedical research: Knowledge, self-evaluation and attitudes of biology and medical students

Laboratory Animals, vol. 56, pp. 455–465

Abstract

Animal experiments in biomedical research are debated in public, within the scientific community and among students. Despite increased efforts to reduce, refine and replace animal experiments, they remain integral components of the job of a biomedical scientist. In Germany, persons must have a university degree and adequate education and training to perform and direct animal experiments. Therefore, training courses such as FELASA (Federation of European Laboratory Animal Science Associations) courses are provided. However, in our experience, students become aware of this very late in their studies when decisions about their future careers have already been made. We initiated this study to have a better understanding of when and how animal experiments should be discussed during university education. We evaluated the knowledge, self-evaluation and attitudes of biology and medical students of different semesters regarding animal experiments at the RWTH Aachen University, Germany. An online survey was conducted to assess demographic information, knowledge about animal experiments, self-evaluation and attitudes towards animal experiments. Students of both fields showed limited knowledge of animal experiments. Biology students showed significantly better knowledge and self-evaluated their knowledge higher than medical students. The field of the study correlated with their knowledge and self-evaluation but did not predict participants' attitudes towards animal experiments. In conclusion, the current study showed that there is still room for improvement to raise awareness about laboratory animal science in the biomedical research field.

Authors 5

1. Stephanie Kanzler Aachen Faculty of Medicine Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology Institute for Laboratory Animal Science

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute for Laboratory Animal Science, Faculty of Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Germany

   Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Germany

2. Julia Krabbe Aachen Faculty of Medicine Institute of Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute of Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Germany

3. Thomas Forkmann Aachen Faculty of Medicine Institute of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology

   RWTH Aachen University · University of Duisburg-Essen

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany

   Institute of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, Faculty of Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Germany

4. Rene Hany Tolba corresponding Aachen Faculty of Medicine Institute for Laboratory Animal Science

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute for Laboratory Animal Science, Faculty of Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Germany

5. Julia Steitz Aachen Faculty of Medicine Institute for Laboratory Animal Science

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute for Laboratory Animal Science, Faculty of Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Germany