Sea4Us got on #BOARD24 and held its inaugural “Animal Research Workshop at Sea4Us 🐭🪸”. This was a great opportunity to share with all collaborators Sea4Us’s values regarding experimentation and animal welfare.
💭 Over three insightful sessions, our team delved deep into the importance of transparency in our practices, guided by our commitment to ethical standards.
We took our collaborators an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of our rodent house. They witnessed firsthand some of the key behavioral studies we conduct 🐁 and learned about the meticulous process of harvesting biological material 🧫.
Throughout, we emphasized our dedication to #reduce the number of animals used and to constantly #refine our methods to ensure the highest standards of welfare.
The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, and we’re grateful to all who participated and contributed to the enriching discussions! We are proud to share a summary of the feedback’ themes we got:
✨ Positive Shift in Perspective ✨: Many participants noted a positive change in their perspective on animal experimentation after attending the workshop. They mentioned gaining a deeper understanding of the necessity and ethical considerations involved.
🐾 Commitment to Animal Welfare 🐾: There was unanimous praise for Sea4Us’s commitment to animal welfare. Participants highlighted the organization’s meticulous care and ethical approach throughout the experimentation process.
📖 Educational Value 📖: The workshop was widely regarded as informative and enlightening. Participants appreciated the opportunity to learn about the ethical principles, procedures, and practices associated with animal experimentation.
🪟 Transparency and Openness 🪟: Sea4Us’s initiative to organize the workshop was seen as a demonstration of transparency and openness regarding the use of laboratory animals. It fostered internal dialogue and dispelled misconceptions about animal research.
💌 Gratitude 💌: Several participants expressed gratitude to the organizer (Beatriz Szwarc, Transparency in Animal Research and Welfare Officer and Animal Research Manager at Sea4Us) for providing them with the opportunity to participate in the workshop and gain valuable insights into animal experimentation practices.
Eu era extremamente sensível em relação ao tópico dos testes em animais. Embora racionalmente soubesse que era absolutamente imprescindível passar por ensaios em animais durante o desenvolvimento de fármacos, era uma dualidade quase moral que eu tinha enquanto cientista e ser humano. E desde que integrei a Sea4Us e pude contactar com os cientistas que trabalham em experimentação animal, o meu desconforto relativamente a este assunto mudou muito. Porque eu agora sei que é possível fazer este tipo de estudo mantendo o maior respeito, e até mesmo carinho, pelos animais até ao fim da sua vida, justificando a necessidade de o fazer. E isto vem desde a planificação dos ensaios, na atenção dada à redução do número de animais e no cuidado em dar o maior conforto possível aos animais em todas as fases. Por isso, obrigada à Beatriz por me permitir ver isto de perto e por me permitir ter um novo ângulo muito mais informado.
Marília Silva, PhD R&D PM, Senior Scientist