Animal Experimentation

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Every year, over a million animals are tested on across the world. Animal experimentation is one of the most controversial issues. Animal testing is the use of non-human animals in research and development projects, especially for purposes of determining the safety of substances such as foods or drugs. Some people believe that animal testing is unnecessary and there are more efficient alternatives. Others believe that animal testing is crucial to the development of new products and cures. According to the Science of Toxicology, “Research involving laboratory animals is necessary to ensure and enhance human and animal health and protection of the environment”(1). Animal testing should be stopped because animals do not react the same way as humans do; Alternatives to animal testing are often more accurate, and animal tests can be cruel and often unnecessary There is no animal on earth that can simulate a human being. Different DNA separates all living species on earth. Human and chimpanzee DNA is different in many ways. DNA, deoxyribonucleic acid, is the molecule that carries genetic information in all living systems (DNA 1). According to DeWitt, one major difference is that Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes while chimpanzees have 24. At the end of each chromosome is a string of repeating DNA sequences, called a telomere. Chimpanzees and other apes have about 23 kilobases while humans have only 10. While 18 pairs of chromosomes are virtually identical, chromosomes 4, 9 and 12 show evidence of being remodeled. In other words, the genes and markers on these chromosomes are not in the same order in the human and chimpanzee. The “Y” chromosome in particular is also a different size and has many markers that do not line up between th... ... middle of paper ... ...here is no firm evidence that animal testing has saved anyone’s life directly, particularly in the case of HIV. “Most drugs could probably have been developed without the use of animals” (HIV drugs, vaccines and animal testing 1). As can be seen from all of the evidence, animal testing is wrong. Why test on millions of animals every year if there is no need? There is no need to test on animals because they cannot simulate a human. Why not use alternatives if they are more accurate? Testing any product on animals is like guessing the outcome of two flipped coins in a row. The product it either going to fail or work on the animal. And based on that, it still cannot be determined whether or not it will work on humans. Animals are suffering everyday on earth. There is no ethical reason to put any living animal through pain, especially when animal testing is worthless.

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