Meet the jury: The ethics and reliability of organoid, in silico, and other animal-minimizing research methodologies by prof. Rachel A. Ankeny

About the lecture
The 3Rs (reduction, refinement, and replacement) have long been a cornerstone of animal research ethics and care, but recently there has been considerable attention to alternatives to animal testing, furthered by recent regulatory changes such as the U.S. FDA Modernization Act (2021) and EU toxicology regulations. However, as with any other major scientific change, researchers working in the associated fields will face numerous choices about whether and how they reshape their practices associated with animal testing, including what they consider to be relevant standards for evidence, reliability, translation, and so on.

This talk will use a repertoires framework (Ankeny & Leonelli 2016) to explore what are termed ‘new approach methodologies” (NAMs) including in vivo and in silico methods, organoids and organs on chips, lower level organisms, and increased use of human subjects to investigate the prospects and barriers for these transitions in biomedical research, arguing that reforms in institutions, ethics review processes, funding and publication norms, and scientific culture and epistemologies will be required for any transitions to NAMs to occur.

About the speaker
Prof Rachel A. Ankeny is Chair of the Philosophy Group at Wageningen University, and previously was Professor of History and Philosophy at the University of Adelaide. Her research explores topics in the philosophy and history of the biomedical sciences, philosophy of medicine, bioethics, and food and agricultural ethics. She is Editor in Chief of Studies in History and Philosophy of Science, the immediate past president of ISHPSSB, and the co-founder of the Society for Philosophy of Science in Practice (SPSP).

Contact: Jacopo<dot>Ambrosj<at>kuleuven<dot>be