Author: ctayler

Categories
Biological Sciences Issues in Science Science in the News

Animal research: cruel or crucial?

© Understanding Animal Research / Wellcome Images

On October 28, 2011, Dr. John Hepburn, (Vice President, Research and International) sent an email to the UBC community on the subject of animal research.  He outlined the university’s plans to increase transparency on its animal research by releasing details on the number of animals and categories of species being used.

According to www.animalresearch.ubc.ca, 211,764 animals were used in research at UBC in 2010.  Of those, 56% were rodents, 35% were fish, and 6% were reptiles or amphibians.  Chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans were not studied at all, and are not used for research in Canada primarily due to their classification as endangered species.  Instead of these primates, rhesus macaques are often used in research.   At UBC they are involved in studies investigating depression, Parkinson’s disease and other brain disorders.

It is worth noting that not all animals involved in research are used in a typical lab setting.  Animals involved in catch & release and observational studies are counted, as well as those in laboratory research. The majority (68%) of animal research at UBC involves less than minor or short-term stress to the animal.  Examples of this type of research include tagging of wild animals for conservation purposes.

Part of the reason that UBC has not released such details about its animal research until now is because of the potential negative backlash from animal rights activists.  Undoubtedly this is a problem that faces every member of the animal research community, and increasingly this is an issue that they are attempting to address.

This video from Understanding Animal Research outlines some of the key reasons why animal research is critical in modern society.

Highlighted in this video is what can happen when proper animal research and testing is not carried out on drugs prior to their release to the public. Thalidomide was sold starting in 1957 as an effective tranquilizer and painkiller, often prescribed to pregnant women to treat morning sickness.  However, thalidomide caused major birth defects in over 10,000 children, and was outlawed in most countries by 1962.  Much stricter testing is now required on drugs before they can be approved for sale as a result of the thalidomide disaster, often referred to as one of the worst medical tragedies of modern times.

In today’s society where humans are extremely close to their pets, animal research is often though of as harmful and unnecessary.  However, not only does animal research help humans, but other animals as well.  For example, a cure for feline leukemia, a type of cancer common to both humans and cats, has been found thanks to animal research.

While scientists make every effort not to use animal research by taking advantage of computer modeling, there is only so much an inanimate machine can replicate.   If the day ever comes when a computer can accurately represent an animal cardiovascular system, perhaps animal research can stop.  Until then we will have to make do with the next best thing, and remain diligent about our ethics.

Categories
New and innovative science Science in the News Uncategorized

Self-healing materials: Cutting edge technology

The capability that living creatures have to repair themselves is astounding.  Imagine you accidentally cut yourself with a knife while you’re making dinner.  It’s not a huge deal, a little inconvientent perhaps, but nothing your body can’t handle.  Now imagine cutting a sheet of plastic with that same knife.  The plastic does not have the same capability to re-heal itself like we do.  Once it’s cut, it can’t spontaneously heal itself back into it’s original conformation.

However, this is a phenomenon scientists have been trying achieve for nearly a decade.  By experimenting with plastics, metals and carbon composites, researchers are attempting to create self-healing materials.

Mediocre Microcapsules

Self-healing fluid and hardening agent in a cracked material. Source: The University of Illinois

For the past decade, self-healing technology involves microcapsules filled with a self-healing fluid embedded into the material that is to be repaired, say a plastic. The fluid in the capsules is a monomer of the polymer plastic.  Accompanying the microcapsules are catalyst hardening agents that react with the healing fluid to solidify it.

When the crack in the plastic punctures the microcapsules, the healing fluid within is released into the crack.  The fluid polymerizes when it comes into contact with the catalyst, and the mixture seals the crack.

This method is effective, but not very efficient.  It can repair cracks between fifty and one hundred micrometers wide, but the fluids have to move through the material by diffusion, which can take a long time.  Also, there is a limit to the number of capsules that can be put in the material without weakening it’s structural integrity.

Circulatory Channels

Pressurized self-healing channels. Source: The Journal of the Royal Society Interface. Hamilton et al. September 2011.

New research being conducted by scientists at the University of Illinois attempts to mimic an animal circulatory system by copying the blood vessels and heart.  Instead of having the self-healing fluids in capsules, they have put it in channels in the material.  Similar to the microcapsules, when the channels are punctured, the fluid within them is released into the crack.

In addition to this change, pressure is also applied at the inlets and outlets of the channel to force the fluid into the crack in the material. This added pressure acts like a heart does in a circulatory system.  The heart forces blood to move all throughout an animal’s body.  The pressure applied to the self-healing fluid has the same effect.  This technique ensures that the entire crack can be effectively repaired.  With the applied pressure method cracks up to one millimetre wide can be repaired.

Current Applications

This technology has innumerable applications in infrastructure and engineering.  NASA is looking into self-healing materials particularly for their space stations.  Cracks and damages on these structures could risk the safety of the entire mission.  With self-healing materials, the lives of astronauts are more secure, and they can focus on exploration, rather than restoration.

For more information on NASA’s work on self-healing materials, check out this video.

 

References

Nature article on microcapsule method:

http://www.nature.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/nature/journal/v409/n6822/full/409794a0.html

 

BBC article on current self-healing research:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15096393
 

Journal of the Royal Society Interface article on channel method:

http://rsif.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/early/2011/09/21/rsif.2011.0508.full?sid=a7be39b9-bde9-42aa-bc0c-c27b5e8a1bac
 

NASA video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lre1ddnG-4
Categories
Environment Issues in Science Science Communication

True or False? Presenting Scientific Data Without Evidence

Over the course of Earth’s history there have been many mass extinctions. After each one there is the devastation of a world rid of many forms of life.  Barren and bleak, it must be a hard place to live.  Nevertheless, each mass extinction allows space for new life to grow and develop, such as dinosaurs and humans.  The uprisings, life spans and demises of several creatures have been well documented by scientists throughout history.

It is well known that mass extinctions do occur, but their exact mechanism is often unknown, or speculated at best.  For example, one of history’s greatest mysteries is what caused the massive Permian-Triassic extinction. Caused by a large volcano eruption or a meteor strike resulting in a severe lack of oxygen in the atmosphere and ocean, this extinction is estimated to have killed 85% of all living organisms on the planet. However, a recent Vancouver Sun article cites rising ocean acidity levels as the culprit for the P-T extinction, not a lack of oxygen.

 

A large meteor strike is one of the possible causes of the Permian-Triassic extinction.

While this article raises interesting points, there is a complete lack of evidence for the ocean acidity hypothesis.  As scientists it is important to remember that we haven’t found out everything there is to know about the world, and that new discoveries are being made on a daily basis.  However, each new discovery needs to have accompanying evidence to confirm the finding.  While most scientists are aware of this, and are wary of research presented without evidence, members of the public may not be so cognizant.  Thus, when new information is presented without evidence it can be misleading to people outside the scientific community.  It is therefore important that as scholars we communicate clearly with both the public and the media who will be translating our information.  This will ensure that there is no room for misinterpretation or deceptive statements.  By keeping the language we use to communicate science clear and simple, it will make it easier to convey our ideas to the general public and thereby bolster an interest in the field.

 

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