The Canadian Centre for Alternatives to Animal Methods (CCAAM) and its subsidiary, the Canadian Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods (CaCVAM), is a research centre founded in 2017 and based at the
University of Windsor
, mottoeng = Goodness, Discipline and Knowledge
, established =
, academic_affiliations = CARL, COU, Universities Canada
, former_names = Assumption College (1857-1956)Assumption University of Windsor (1956-1963)
, type = Public universit ...
, in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. Its goal is “to develop, validate, and promote laboratory methods and techniques that don’t use animal test subjects”. It is the first centre in Canada dedicated to non-
animal testing
Animal testing, also known as animal experimentation, animal research, and ''in vivo'' testing, is the use of non-human animals in experiments that seek to control the variables that affect the behavior or biological system under study. This ...
and the promotion of
human-relevant alternatives.
Mission and projects
The CCAAM's mission is based on three pillars:
* scientific research relying exclusively on human-based biomaterials and human biology-based methodologies, including human cells,
stem cells
In multicellular organisms, stem cells are undifferentiated or partially differentiated cells that can differentiate into various types of cells and proliferate indefinitely to produce more of the same stem cell. They are the earliest type o ...
, tissues from cadavers,
biopsies
A biopsy is a medical test commonly performed by a surgeon, interventional radiologist, or an interventional cardiologist. The process involves extraction of sample cells or tissues for examination to determine the presence or extent of a diseas ...
, and explanted organs from surgeries;
* academic training for scientists, ethicists, regulators, and policy makers, including development of a one-year masters programme;
* regulatory initiatives for changing chemical safety methods in Canada, with academic, industry, government, and public partnerships.
One of its main focuses of research is
diabetes
Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...
, using “human stem cells to create diabetes in a dish”.The CCAAM is opposed to
animal testing
Animal testing, also known as animal experimentation, animal research, and ''in vivo'' testing, is the use of non-human animals in experiments that seek to control the variables that affect the behavior or biological system under study. This ...
based on ethical and scientific reasons. The director, biochemist Dr.
Charu Chandrasekera
Charu is a word derived from Sanskrit that refers to something beautiful, graceful and pure in a spiritual sense.
The word also means “one who is radiant and graceful”
And is often used in the Ramayana for praising Rama, Lord Rama.
It ref ...
who specializes in
heart disease
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, hea ...
and diabetes, states that “Ninety-five per cent of drugs tested to be safe and effective in animal models fail in human
clinical trials
Clinical trials are prospective biomedical or behavioral research studies on human participants designed to answer specific questions about biomedical or behavioral interventions, including new treatments (such as novel vaccines, drugs, dietar ...
”.
Funding
In 2018, it received a $1 million donation from the Eric S. Margolis Family Foundation, considered “the largest research donation in University of Windsor history”,
part of which will be used to create a research and training facility.
See also
*
Alternatives to animal testing
Alternatives to animal testing are the development and implementation of test methods that avoid the use of live animals.
There is widespread agreement that a reduction in the number of animals used and the refinement of testing to reduce suffer ...
*
Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing
The Johns Hopkins University Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT) has worked with scientists, since 1981, to find new methods to replace the use of laboratory animals in experiments, reduce the number of animals tested, and refine nece ...
*
Pain and suffering in laboratory animals
Pain negatively affects the health and welfare of animals. "Pain" is defined by the International Association for the Study of Pain as "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or descr ...
*
Animal testing regulations
Animal testing regulations are guidelines that permit and control the use of non-human animals for scientific experimentation. They vary greatly around the world, but most governments aim to control the number of times individual animals may be us ...
References
Animal testing techniques
Laboratory techniques
Human subject research
University of Windsor
{{Portal, Science, Canada