Wisconsin Watch Media Partners Center (https://partners.wisconsinwatch.org/tag/primate-research/)
An experiment on newborn monkeys at the University of Wisconsin-Madison has ignited a debate, including a national petition drive, a federal review and a proposed local resolution seeking to halt the research.
UW-Madison psychiatry professor Ned Kalin received approval to conduct the first experiment on campus in more than 30 years that will intentionally deprive newborn monkeys of their mothers, a practice designed to impact a primate’s psychological well-being. The protocol drew unusual debate from oversight committees, and it has raised questions about the degree of suffering acceptable in an experimental design with uncertain outcomes.
“I think everyone who does animal research feels they’re balancing the need for and desire to alleviate human suffering and to minimize animal suffering,” says behavioral neuroscientist Craig Berridge. But others are skeptical that committees overseeing the use of animals can rigorous evaluate the ethics of the work.