International legal standards for conducting biomedical experiments on animals: status and prospects of development

The article highlights the basic principles of the use of animals in biomedical research raised the main problems of vivisection. It also suggests specific steps to enhance the humanization of this process. The conclusions are the following: it is very important to prevent cruelty to animals in the context of resolving bioethical and legal problems associated with the implementation of the principle of humanism and the protection of animal rights. Modern science and the practice of preclinical and clinical tests should be involved into serious challenge in order to improve and universalize the process of medical and biological research technology in vitro.

The purpose of the article is to study the main international legal principles of using animals in biomedical experiments, as well as to determine the main problems on this issue and to outline the ways to resolve them.

The research material is a modern international regulatory framework that establishes the basic principles for the animals treatment. The methods of information retrieval, analysis, systematization, and generalization were used in this article.

As it is well-known, human treatment of people begins with a human attitude towards animals. Nowadays the international community has adopted enough legal acts regulating the proper behavior with animals, including those specially cultivated for such studies (laboratory) when conducting biomedical experiments. Recently, both, in the national legislation of European countries and international legislation, there have been trends in the protection of both the general rights of animals as well as intensification of their protection in the field of biomedical research.

It is imperative, both at the international and national levels, to adopt programs for development and support of scientific study of the in vitro biosystems introduction into the practice of toxicological studies. At the national level, it is necessary to criminalize the violation of international standards for conducting biomedical research using animals, strengthen other types of responsibility, and create a special system of state bodies responsible for the policy of using animals for biomedical purposes and exercising control in this area. Both, international and national legislation should impose a direct ban on the use of in vivo technologies in case of the possibility of using in vitro technologies.