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Media Coverage Primate Research is Useless and Brutal May 13, 2005 Audit: Primate research is useless, brutal UCD officials say research is necessary for improving animal, human health
By SAWSAN MORRAR / Aggie News Writer Posted 05/11/2005 An independent audit of the nation's top research laboratories was released
this week, which included significant mention of UC Davis' California National
Primate Research Center. According to a news release, the audit suggests that
much of the research done at the center is cruel to animal subjects, redundant,
useless and a waste of taxpayer dollars. Stop Animal Exploitation Now, a Cincinnati-based nonprofit research watchdog
organization that conducted the audit, revealed its findings of the top 50 U.S.
facilities which receive the most federal funding. SAEN ranked the CNPRC 20th
nationally, claiming the center receives $148 million annually. Michael Budkie, executive director of SAEN, said the report indicates that
many research centers engage in needless projects and conduct invasive studies
that cause animals severe pain and distress. "It's shocking that labs across the nation which receive billions in federal
tax dollars are allowed to conduct useless research which accomplishes little
more than keeping 'scientists' employed," he said in a press release. Deniene Erickson, spokesperson from the CNPRC, said the center places a great
importance on conducting fair research on animals. "We care about our animals, and our work is worthwhile," she said. "It is
very important for our work in AIDS, autism, asthma, and so on." Research at the primate center also includes the study of the brain, HIV and
vaccines. UCD spokesperson Andy Fell discredited the audit's claims, saying SAEN's
primary goal is to ban all animal research. "This is not exactly an independent audit because it is from this
organization," Fell said. "The primate center is inspected by the USDA and
[Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care
International]. The USDA is legally obligated to inspect the center, and they
can come in at any time." The audit report not only claims that the primate center is cruel to animals,
but that the actual research is pointless. "UC Davis research is highly redundant, scientifically meaningless and
excruciating for the victimized monkeys," the release said. "We want taxpayers
in California and the rest of the country to see exactly what they are getting
for the millions of dollars that fund UC Davis research." Fell noted that repeating research is often necessary. "The point is that you have to do research. You do something similar that
someone has already done because it might be taken in a different direction, or
you can build on past research," he said. Erickson pointed out that researchers at the primate center are not
duplicating, but verifying their work through several experiments. The primate center, founded in 1962, is part of a network of eight primate
facilities in the nation. Though highly regarded for its research in improving
human and animal health, the center has repeatedly been called out by animal
rights organizations for alleged animal cruelty. SAWSAN MORRAR can be reached at
[email protected]
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