Animal Experimentation Ethics Committee

Presentation

The Animal Experimentation Ethics Committee of the Research Institute of HSCSP is an independent entity that, in accordance with current legislation on laboratory animals (European Directive 2010/63/EU, Spanish Royal Decree RD 53/2013 and Decree 214/1997 of the Generalitat de Catalunya) acts as an expert and advisory committee in the area of animal experimentation, with members from different areas of knowledge – basic research, veterinary medicine, animal welfare and human medicine.

No experimental procedure with animals can be carried out at the IR-HSCSP Animal Facility without authorization from the CEEA. The working principles that govern this Committee are good science and proper animal welfare, based on the principle of the 3Rs: replacement, reduction and refinement.

The functions of the Animal Experimentation Ethics Committee are:

• Provide favorable reports on the initiation of experimentation projects after verifying the suitability of the procedures in relation to the study objectives, the possibility of achieving valid results with the minimum number of animals, the consideration of alternative methods to the use of animals and the suitability of the selected species.
• Ensure that animals will not suffer unnecessarily and that they will receive, when necessary, analgesia, anesthesia or other methods of eliminating pain, suffering or distress.
• Supervise the use of humane euthanasia methods.
• Ensure that the personnel involved in the procedure are qualified to perform the assigned tasks.
• Review already accepted procedures or suspend already initiated procedures that do not comply with the requirements established by the protocol.