抄録
Needless to say, animal experiments are indispensable in medical and animal sciences, medical practice and pharmaceutical industries. On the other hand, there are many criticisms against animal experiments from the view point of animal welfare and ethics. There are many countries in Europe where animal experiments are strongly retarded by highly severe regulations. Our country is not an exception where animal supply is getting to be limited, and the anti-vivisections movement is getting more active. Under these circumstances, it is important to promote support and understanding by the social community for animal experiments and to tell them that animal experiments are conducted scientifically and ethically. The Science Council of Japan (SCJ) has proposed, on July 14, 2004, to establish nation-wide guidelines for animal experiments and a third-party evaluating organization composed of experts. SCJ is calling active participation of scientific organizations committed in animal experiments to establish these self-regulatory systems. In this symposium presentation, the detailed process and circumstances discussed in SCJ will be reported. [Jpn J Physiol 55 Suppl:S60 (2005)]
