Science, medical progress, animals and YOU

Dear reader,

I am concerned about what is happening in Montreal with pharmaceuticals and their R&D centers. Aren't you?

The latest announcement came from Boehringer Ingelheim (BI) in Laval - 170 jobs lost at their Virology research facility, a well known center of excellence with a focus on translational research.

The 36$million investment was discribed as follows by BI in 2008 at the time of opening

(source http://www.newswire.ca/fr/story/284091/boehringer-ingelheim-completes-36-million-investment-in-laval-for-state-of-the-art-research-centre) :

"On behalf of Boehringer Ingelheim, I am proud to be in Laval to mark this historic day within the company as we celebrate this new expansion project," said Christian Boehringer, Chairman of the Shareholders Committee Boehringer Ingelheim.
"The Laval facility has contributed to scientificdiscovery in the area of virology that may not only help patients in Canada,but around the world. This site is expected to make an even greater contribution to the translation of scientific discoveries into drugs which help patients. And that is what Boehringer Ingelheim stands for, research into health areas of unmet need."
As one of the four principal research centers for Boehringer Ingelheim worldwide, the Laval facility focuses on the discovery of new treatments for Hepatitis C and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV, which causes AIDS)infection, diseases for which either no vaccine exists or current therapy is unsatisfactory. The new laboratories will allow Boehringer Ingelheim to continue to contribute to and complement its existing product portfolio, which includes HIV treatments VIRAMUNE(R) and APTIVUS(R).

Neither of the diseases mentioned have been cured as far as I know and the quality of the research nor the researchers are at cause for the announced 2013 closure.

So what is happening in the pharmaceutical world? Is research being delocated? Is there no more translational research taking place in Montreal, or is the industry increasingly being prevented from bringing in crucial research animals such as non human primates? In the United Kingdom because of animal rights actions, the situation has deteriorated to such a point that there's no UK based carrier available to transport research animals such as non human primates into the country. Non human primates are critical research models used in the search for cures against both deseases (Hep C and HIV).

I think it is time for the general public to better understand how animal research is linked to medical progress and why we need to have research centers in Montreal, Québec and abroad if we want to continue to be important players in the search for cures and medical advancement.

An initial piece of information can be found here http://www.pro-test.org.uk/MAAR.pdf

and for us in Canada here: http://www.chrcrm.org/en/importance-animals-research

What can you do to help?

1/Stand by the pharmaceutical and airline industry and voice your support through associations such as AALAS – American Association for Laboratory Animal Science (www.aalas.org), CALAS—Canadian Association for Laboratory Animal Science (www.calas-acsal.org) ICLAS – International Council for Laboratory Animal Science (www.iclas.org) and other scientific and professional organizations that advocate for both biomedical research and laboratory animal welfare. Ensure that the issue of protecting humane research animal transportation is on their agendas.

2/Ensure that your elected officials appreciate the importance of research centers and animal research. Ask them to look into the problems of delocating research and the declining pool of available airlines for the continued transport of research animals.

3/Inform others as to the humane and judicious nature of animal research, and why it is still needed. Underscore its achievements and the medical progress to which it has contributed. Information and links to resources to get you started are available from Speaking of Research site, and on my Advancing Animal Research blog at http://research4drugdiscovery.blogspot.ca/

Our way or the dust mite's way?

Small things hold great power. Microbiologists will tell you so. So will those that suffer from allergies.
Think of asthma for example. Having non obstructed airways or perhaps I should say non inflamed or non irritated airways, is a blessing. Think of the amount of air you breath day in day out. Now think of being somehow deprived of, or obstructed from, this regular supply. An affected adult can express discomfort and describe what is happening. Infants and very young children can't. They therefore rely on us, adults, to take care of their well being. Here is an article that gives you an idea of the amount of air needed during certain activities. When you are affected by asthma you get to know all about bronchodilators, inhalers and nebulizers. You learn about short term relief and long term control. For some, asthma symptoms will be less present in life because of physiological changes or because of a change in your living environment ( a move for example). The disease however remains.  To find out more about asthma click here.  As parents you worry about the long term effects of medication and balancing act of the immediate and long term well being of your child.

Things do get worse during night time when most of us enjoy a good night of sleep. Our own bedrooms can be infected by small (less than a third of a millimeter) arthropods commonly called house dust mites. These little creatures are the source of allergy and asthma for many of us. In fact in the US it is estimated that a 20 million people are affected according to the Asthma and Allergy foundation of America. Project this number over worldwide population and you will agree with me that this is a serious disease. To view a video about asthma and how animal research contributed click here.

In come a team of researchers,

XiaoJia Wang, Shaun Reece, Stephen Olmstead, Robert L Wardle, and Michael R Van Scott

Department of Physiology, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA

Correspondence: Michael R Van Scott, Department of Physiology, The Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, 6N98 Brody Building, Greenville, NC 27834, USA,
Email vanscottmi@ecu.edu   

whom produce the following study using, you guessed it once again non human primates. It is called:

Nocturnal thoracoabdominal asynchrony in house dust mite-sensitive nonhuman primates.

Their conclusions speak for themselves:

The results provide compelling evidence that daytime exposure to aeroallergen in allergic NHP is associated with an increased incidence of nocturnal disturbances in breathing. Taken together, the results indicate that symptoms of nocturnal asthma can be induced in NHP, providing a model for elucidating the mechanisms underlying circadian manifestation of asthma symptoms.

So as we all gently move on with science and our planet becomes more and more populated some difficult choices will be ours to make. Shall we leave the choice of using animals as open as possible or do we need to restrict it? Are we prepared to tackle the challenges ahead of us and are we well equipped to do so? Is it in the end the dust mite that will prevail, for I see no reason why this tiny animal isn't a sentient being, or is it us?  You may disagree with my analogy but by comparing the extremes it becomes clear that some are being manipulated. Or one could say the mite is hiding the forest.  Small things  hold great power so beware of what you wish for.