210 • Alternatives to Animal Use in Research, Testing, and Education 
In Vitro Methods 
Like the use of invertebrates, in vitro manipula- 
tion and maintenance of animal components such 
as cells, tissues, or organs (see chs. 6 and 8) can 
illustrate many biological principles. The incorpo- 
ration of in vitro techniques into students’ educa- 
tion and training also bears potential for shaping 
their later attitudes about the utility of in vitro 
methods. The stimulus provided by in vitro lab- 
oratory exercises can therefore ultimately alter 
the general course of research and testing. 
One noteworthy endeavor in training research- 
ers in in-vitro methods is the program of the Cen- 
ter for Advanced Training in Cell and Molecular 
Biology at Catholic University of America in Wash- 
ington, DC. With funding from the American Fund 
for Alternatives to Animal Research, the American 
Anti-Vivisection Society, and the Albert Schweit- 
zer Fellowship, the Center offers courses to stu- 
dents interested in the biomedical sciences and 
to professional researchers. In 1985, its third year 
of existence, the Center offered: 
• Basic Cell and Tissue Culture, 
• In Vitro Toxicology: Principles and Methods, 
• Tissue Culture Technology in Neuroscience 
Research, and 
• An Introduction to Tissue Culture and In Vitro 
Toxicology. 
The first three courses were attended by techni- 
cians and Ph.D. and M.D. researchers. The last 
course was specifically designed for high school 
seniors and college freshmen (9). Activities of this 
nature are useful in that they enable professionals 
and, particularly, beginning students to become 
acquainted with and proficient in in-vitro meth- 
odologies and to comprehend the possibilities as 
well as the limitations of alternative methods. 
The debate about whether or not the training 
of medical and veterinary students requires ani- 
mals has spawned development of an alternative 
technique in microsurgery training. The most 
prominent use of microsurgery is for reconnect- 
ing arteries and veins, for example in restoring 
circulation to severed fingers. To reproduce vas- 
cular circulation for microsurgical training, a Brit- 
ish plastic surgeon connected human placentas to 
a pump and an artificial blood supply, thereby 
simulating a heartbeat and typical blood pressures . 
Because the placenta contains blood vessels of 
widely ranging diameters, a single placenta can 
provide material for a substantial amount of prac- 
tice (14). 
At present, the human placenta cannot fully sub- 
stitute for living animals. One of the problems is 
that the placenta contains an anti-blood-clotting 
agent or mechanism that is not understood and 
cannot be controlled. Clotting therefore does not 
occur in placental vessels. Since learning how to 
avoid clotting during repair is a critical aspect of 
training, and since students training on placental 
tissue cannot detect their errors that cause clot- 
ting, the existing system is not fully adequate in 
microsurgical training (14). 
Use of Nonliving Systems 
in Education 
Audiovisual presentations bring the abstract 
prose of lecture and text one step closer to the 
biological reality of living organisms. Films and 
videotapes can demonstrate principles and proto- 
cols performed with live animals, while sparing 
additional animals. They may also present experi- 
ments and situations that cannot be performed 
live in the average classroom setting. As replace- 
ments for animals, however, they lack the living 
dimension; most cannot behave interactively .Re- 
cently developed computerized videodisks offer 
an opportunity for student interaction with an au- 
diovisual program. 
When audiovisual aids are used in concert with 
animals, they may enhance the value of live ani- 
mals used in the laboratory. Students may learn 
a technique from a taped demonstration, for ex- 
ample, and then build on that experience as they 
perform the actual laboratory exercise in vivo. 
Medical education substitutes audiovisual tech- 
niques for animals in several cases. This has less 
to do with educational philosophy than with fac- 
tors external to the particular laboratory exercise. 
Those factors include the costs of animals and the 
facilities required to perform quality experiments, 
large medical school classes, lack of faculty time, 
and competition within a tightly packed curriculum. 
Animal cadavers (e.g., frogs, sharks, cats, and 
fetal pigs) are currently used at all levels of educa- 
