The biggest problem with using monkey's for drug testing purposes is that they are not human beings.
The biggest problem with using monkey's for drug testing purposes is that they are not human beings.
The biggest problem with using monkey's for drug testing purposes is that they are not human beings.
The biggest problem with using monkey's for drug testing purposes is that they are not human beings.

When animals fail the test


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The cause of a 50-year-old medical disaster that blighted the lives of thousands worldwide may finally have been identified - with implications that should concern us all. In 1957, the German pharmaceutical company Chemie Grunenthal launched a remedy for the nausea and sleeplessness that often affect pregnant mothers. It went on sale under many names in more than 40 countries, but is best known by a brand name that can still strike a chill in those born in the late 1950s: thalidomide.

By the early 1960s, more than 10,000 babies had been born with severe malformations to mothers who had taken the drug during pregnancy. The tragedy had a dramatic effect on the development of new drugs. Regulatory authorities demanded testing on at least two different animal species before a drug entered human trials - a rule that stands to this day. Yet while this boosted confidence in drug safety, one irony is frequently overlooked. It is far from clear that thalidomide's terrible effects would have been detected even by today's animal testing. Chemie Grunenthal's scientists appeared to have carried out such tests using rats and mice, but whether they extended to studies of pregnant animals remains unclear - not least because key documents mysteriously disappeared.

In the years that followed, other researchers tried to find animals that might have sounded the alarm over thalidomide, but tests on standard lab animals gave inconsistent results. In the end, only two types of monkey and a certain breed of New Zealand rabbit proved capable of producing malformations like those seen in humans - and even then, only at high doses. New research published today appears to get to the root of the problem with thalidomide. A team led by Dr Jurgen Knobloch of the University of Cologne in Germany has shown that the drug generates huge quantities of so-called superoxide - roughly speaking, a toxic form of oxygen molecule, which is able to damage growing cells. The team has also found that mice cells produce much higher levels of glutathione than human cells - a compound which mops up the superoxide, and thus prevents thalidomide from wreaking its damage.

Reporting their findings in the journal Molecular Pharmaceutics, the researchers point out that boosting glutathione to human embryonic cells may help protect them against the drug's effects. While too late to help those whose lives were blighted by the drug during pregnancy, this finding could help rehabilitate thalidomide, which is effective against several serious conditions, including multiple myeloma, a form of cancer.

Yet the real significance of this new research is more basic and far-reaching. It provides further evidence for something which should surprise no one: animals are not humans, and differ in ways that are hard to predict. As such, the new research casts further doubt over the logic of the animal testing that became mandatory after the thalidomide tragedy. Defenders of animal testing have a ready response to those who question the practice. Virtually every medical achievement of the last century, they argue, has depended on the use of animals in some way.

It is a claim widely endorsed by medical researchers. A few years ago, over 500 eminent academics signed a petition supporting the statement, among them three Nobel laureates. And in the case of drug testing, it is undoubtedly true. Every life-saving drug developed over the last few decades has involved the use of animals. But that is because it is mandatory. Crediting animals for their role in such breakthroughs makes no more sense than hailing the wearing of lab coats by the scientists involved. As they always wear them, it is hardly a surprise that lab coats are in evidence when breakthroughs are made. To assess the real value of animals (or lab coats) in drug testing, focusing on success stories alone is not enough. It is crucial to know how and why such tests fail to predict what happens in humans.

That can happen in two ways: firstly, where animals fail to warn of real toxic effects in humans - as in thalidomide - and secondly, where they give false alarms, with the animals falling victim to drugs that would be fine in humans. After decades of drugs trials, it is pretty clear that animals fail in the first way all too often. According to the US Food and Drug Administration, for every 100 pharmaceuticals that successfully pass animal safety testing, 92 fail in human trials.

Gauging the flip side - how often animals wrongly predict harm in drugs that would be safe in humans - is more difficult, not least because such drugs are not allowed to progress to human trials. The truth is, no one has any idea how many wonder drugs are being missed because they failed spurious safety tests involving animals. Even so, any vet can reel off a list of human medicines that will do animals serious harm, from antidepressants and cold cures to cancer treatments and even aspirin.

There is an obvious rejoinder to all this, of course: for all their failings, there is still no reliable alternative to the use of animals. To judge by an international conference held last week at the Royal Society in London, it is an argument fast becoming unsustainable. Organised by the UK-based Safer Medicines Trust, it highlighted progress in a host of techniques which allow drugs to be tested directly on human cells. And in stark contrast to animal testing, a genuine effort is being made to gauge just how reliable such tests are in predicting the effect of the drugs in patients.

It will be some years yet before such techniques become the standard means of assessing new drugs. Until then, we can only hope that the lottery of animal tests does not lead to another medical disaster on the scale of thalidomide. Robert Matthews is Visiting Reader in Science at Aston University, Birmingham, England

Afghanistan Premier League - at a glance

Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium

Fixtures:

Tue, Oct 16, 8pm: Kandahar Knights v Kabul Zwanan; Wed, Oct 17, 4pm: Balkh Legends v Nangarhar Leopards; 8pm: Kandahar Knights v Paktia Panthers; Thu, Oct 18, 4pm: Balkh Legends v Kandahar Knights; 8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Paktia Panthers; Fri, Oct 19, 8pm: First semi-final; Sat, Oct 20, 8pm: Second semi-final; Sun, Oct 21, 8pm: final

Table:

1. Balkh Legends 6 5 1 10

2. Paktia Panthers 6 4 2 8

3. Kabul Zwanan 6 3 3 6

4. Nagarhar Leopards 7 2 5 4

5. Kandahar Knights 5 1 4 2

SPECS

Nissan 370z Nismo

Engine: 3.7-litre V6

Transmission: seven-speed automatic

Power: 363hp

Torque: 560Nm

Price: Dh184,500

Analysis

Maros Sefcovic is juggling multiple international trade agreement files, but his message was clear when he spoke to The National on Wednesday.

The EU-UAE bilateral trade deal will be finalised soon, he said. It is in everyone’s interests to do so. Both sides want to move quickly and are in alignment. He said the UAE is a very important partner for the EU. It’s full speed ahead - and with some lofty ambitions - on the road to a free trade agreement. 

We also talked about US-EU tariffs. He answered that both sides need to talk more and more often, but he is prepared to defend Europe's position and said diplomacy should be a guiding principle through the current moment. 

 

Yemen's Bahais and the charges they often face

The Baha'i faith was made known in Yemen in the 19th century, first introduced by an Iranian man named Ali Muhammad Al Shirazi, considered the Herald of the Baha'i faith in 1844.

The Baha'i faith has had a growing number of followers in recent years despite persecution in Yemen and Iran. 

Today, some 2,000 Baha'is reside in Yemen, according to Insaf. 

"The 24 defendants represented by the House of Justice, which has intelligence outfits from the uS and the UK working to carry out an espionage scheme in Yemen under the guise of religion.. aimed to impant and found the Bahai sect on Yemeni soil by bringing foreign Bahais from abroad and homing them in Yemen," the charge sheet said. 

Baha'Ullah, the founder of the Bahai faith, was exiled by the Ottoman Empire in 1868 from Iran to what is now Israel. Now, the Bahai faith's highest governing body, known as the Universal House of Justice, is based in the Israeli city of Haifa, which the Bahais turn towards during prayer. 

The Houthis cite this as collective "evidence" of Bahai "links" to Israel - which the Houthis consider their enemy. 

 

The specs

AT4 Ultimate, as tested

Engine: 6.2-litre V8

Power: 420hp

Torque: 623Nm

Transmission: 10-speed automatic

Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)

On sale: Now

The specs

Engine: 3.8-litre V6

Power: 295hp at 6,000rpm

Torque: 355Nm at 5,200rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km

Price: Dh179,999-plus

On sale: now 

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Part three: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

Election pledges on migration

CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections" 

SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom" 

Infiniti QX80 specs

Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6

Power: 450hp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000

Available: Now

While you're here
Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDesign%2C%20multimedia%20and%20creative%20work%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ELogo%20design%2C%20website%20design%2C%20visualisations%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBusiness%20and%20professional%20management%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ELegal%20or%20management%20consulting%2C%20architecture%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBusiness%20and%20professional%20support%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EResearch%20support%2C%20proofreading%2C%20bookkeeping%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ESales%20and%20marketing%20support%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESearch%20engine%20optimisation%2C%20social%20media%20marketing%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EData%20entry%2C%20administrative%2C%20and%20clerical%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EData%20entry%20tasks%2C%20virtual%20assistants%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EIT%2C%20software%20development%20and%20tech%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EData%20analyst%2C%20back-end%20or%20front-end%20developers%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EWriting%20and%20translation%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EContent%20writing%2C%20ghost%20writing%2C%20translation%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EOnline%20microtasks%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EImage%20tagging%2C%20surveys%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3ESource%3A%20World%20Bank%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A