In addition to the 3Rs advancement efforts by US federal agencies and NICEATM/ICCVAM, several independent nonprofit and academic centers also operate with similar mandates. These include:
Alternatives Research & Development Foundation
The Alternatives Research & Development Foundation (ARDF) was established by the American Anti-Vivisection Society in 1993 to provide an independent vehicle for its non-animal alternatives research funding program. The stated ARDF mission is to fund and promote the development, validation, and adoption of non-animal methods in biomedical research, product testing, and education. Since its inception, ARDF has provided more than $1.5 million dollars in direct funding of alternatives research. Recent awards with relevance to regulatory toxicology include the following:
- In vitro model for cytotoxicity using mouse embryonic stem cells (2007)
- Human oligodendrocytes derived from embryonic stem cells for in vitro assessment of neurotoxicity (2007)
- Human embryonic stem cell model to predict neural tube birth defects (2007)
- A novel human mini-liver model for studying drug toxicity (2008)
- Multianalyte microphysiometry of human cell lines to replace animal toxicology (2008)
- Cellular and enzymatic microarrays to reduce the use of animals in toxicology studies (2009)
- Development of virtual rat liver for pharmacological and toxicological investigations (2010)
- Medical device testing in human blood vessel mimics (2010)
ARDF also funds educational activities that advance alternatives, sponsors scientific meetings such as the World Congresses on Alternatives and Animal Use in the Life Sciences, and supports the online alternatives resource sites, AltTox and Altweb.
In addition to its funding programs, ARDF advocates for public policy that advances alternatives. For example, having funded successful development of a practical in vitro alternative to the animal-based ascites production of monoclonal antibodies, ARDF petitioned the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 1997-98 for a ban on the ascites method. While NIH did not agree to the ban, it informed all NIH-funded research facilities that in vitro monoclonal antibody production was to be considered the default method, with justification required for the use of animals.
Institute for In Vitro Sciences, Inc.
The Institute for In Vitro Sciences (IIVS) is a technology-driven, nonprofit organization created to advance the development, validation, and use of in vitro methods in toxicology. Since its founding in 1997, IIVS has come to be recognized as a leading national and international authority on the 3Rs and toxicity testing through the following program activities:
- contract testing services: provide quality in vitro toxicity testing for a broad range of industry and government sectors in the areas of skin and eye irritation/corrosivity, phototoxicity, embryotoxicity, percutaneous absorption, basal cytotoxicity, and other specialized areas.
- Assay development and validation: provide assay optimization services and experienced management of validation projects. IIVS has served as a participating laboratory in numerous prevalidation and validation studies, and participated in the European Union integrated project ACuteTox.
- Education and training: provide clients and other stakeholders with a range of education and training opportunities, including hands-on practical demonstrations designed for new users, as well as more involved 'technical workshops' and 'user groups' of experts in a particular assay. The goal of these outreach efforts is "to improve and expedite in vitro method development and validation through cooperation, exchange of information, and training."
- Advocacy: participate in national and international efforts to promote the validation and acceptance of in vitro toxicity test methods, which includes IIVS appointments to ICCVAM and ECVAM advisory committees and other international scientific task forces.
International (Q)SAR Foundation
Established in 2004 by a former US Environmental Protection Agency senior scientist and program manager, the International (Q)SAR Foundation (IQF) is a nonprofit research entity working to develop quantitative structure-activity relationship [(Q)SAR] and other in silico models as non-animal alternatives for identifying chemical hazards. The stated mission of the IQF is to "develop computerized tools as alternatives to animal testing in order to decrease our reliance on animal tests in regulation, research and education." The goals of IQF include demonstrating "the reliability of (Q)SAR-based methods in hazard identification."
Activities of the IQF include the organization of workshops, support of various research projects, and providing access to relevant software, databases, and training. Central to the foundation's mission is the organization of focused workshops to bring together experts from the regulatory, regulated, and other stakeholder communities to identify barriers to alternative approaches, as well as priorities for research to overcome these barriers. The topics of recent workshops include reactive toxicity, aquatic toxicity, and predictive toxicology. The IQF also supports and collaborates on various research projects including: (Q)SAR for inhalation toxicity in mammals, (Q)SAR for aquatic toxicity of reactive chemicals, (Q)SAR for classification of skin/lung sensitization, and more.
Johns Hopkins Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing
The Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT) was established in 1981 by Alan Goldberg as part of the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. Dr. Goldberg served as the Director of CAAT for over 25 years.
In 2009, Thomas Hartung, former Director of the European Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods (ECVAM), was appointed as the second Director of CAAT. CAAT continues to grow and evolve, and in 2010 established a new European center, CAAT-Europe at the University of Konstanz, Germany.
Activities of CAAT include the following:
- Provide grants for 3Rs research: Proposals are solicited on an annual basis for "seed" awards of around $25-50k. Since its inception, this program has provided millions in direct funding for hundreds of research projects related to the 3Rs.
- Provide awards for 3Rs research, including: Since its inception, CAAT's grants program has provided upwards of $6 million in direct funding for more than 300 research projects related to the 3Rs. In addition, CAAT has established the following recognition awards, which are presented on an annual or semiannual basis:
- Animal Welfare Enhancement Awards, valued at $6,000, to recognize improvements in the "housing, handling and/or experimental situations for laboratory animals"
- Charles River Laboratories' Excellence in Refinement Award, valued at $5,000, to "honor an individual who has made outstanding contribution to the development, promotion, and/or implementation of refinement alternatives"
- CAAT Recognition Award, which is presented at every World Congress to honor an individual or organization who made an outstanding contribution to the field of the 3Rs
- Henry Spira Award, which honors activists in animal welfare who work to achieve progress through dialogue and collaboration.
- Disseminate reliable information about alternative methods: A central tool in CAAT's communication efforts is Altweb, an expansive online clearinghouse for information on alternatives to animal testing. The journal, ALTEX: Alternatives to Animal Experimentation, became part of the Altweb site in 2009.
- Organize workshops and symposia to promote dialogue and progress: Beginning in 1989, CAAT hosted eight technical meetings on such diverse topics as structure-activity relationships, the international status of in vitro test method validation, and humane endpoints. By 1999, CAAT launched a series of flagship workshops called TestSmart, which included TestSmart-HPV (April 1999), TestSmart-Endocrine Disruptors (Feb. 2001 and Feb. 2002), TestSmart-Pharmaceuticals (May 2001), and TestSmart-DNT (March 2006). Workshops continue to be an important part of CAAT activities with 5 organized in the US and EU in 2010, and a number already planned for 2011.
- 3Rs education: The CAAT website provides links to a number of courses and programs offered by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
University of California at Davis Center for Animal Alternatives Information
Based at the University of California at Davis (UCD), the UCD Center for Animal Alternatives Information operates principally as an information resource for university administrators, scientists, students, and others with an interest in animal welfare and the 3Rs. Specific objectives of the center are described by the Center as follows:
- To act as coordinating office for the UCD campus on improved and alternative methods for the use of animals and to coordinate a program of information and dissemination regarding approaches for alternative methods and the sharing of written and electronic materials and information
- To create, maintain and provide access to up-to-date resources and library materials on animal alternatives that are easily accessible to UC faculty, staff and students
- To offer outreach and educational activities regarding new developments in animal alternatives, providing leadership to the public and other educational institutions
- Within the context of the responsible conduct of science, to create a forum for discussion of ethical issues and dilemmas involving animal use
- To encourage use of teaching methods and materials incorporating alternatives at all educational levels
The center's website includes resources such as a guide to relevant databases, tips on appropriate literature reviews, alternatives in education, humane endpoints, and more.
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