Animals in Laboratories

NIH Announces Major Change in Funding Priorities

In line with its recently announced initiative to prioritize human-based research (see AWI Quarterly, summer 2025), the NIH announced in July that moving forward, all new calls for funding from the agency, known...

Replacing Animals in Experimentation: Where We Are, Where We’re Going

Experiments on animals (“in vivo” experiments) have long been the norm for learning about human health and disease, because testing on live animals enables researchers to investigate how chemicals, drugs,...

AWI Refinement Research Award

AWI Statement on Trump Administration’s Plan to Reduce Animal Experimentation Amid Attack on Science

The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) applauds recent announcements by the National Institutes of Health and the US Food and Drug Administration about their plans to reduce the use of animals in research and testing....

Animal Experimentation Under the Trump Administration: The Good, the Bad, the Ugly

The Good: Plans to Reduce Animal Experimentation On April 10, the US Food and Drug Administration announced it would phase out animal testing for certain drug studies. The agency published...

Highlights from Recipients of AWI Implementing Refinement Grants

Refined Mouse Handling The objective of this project was to introduce tunnel handling—a non-aversive alternative to tail handling—to mice during husbandry and routine handling procedures across a large facility with...

AWI Supports Phasing Out Animal Use in Research and Testing, but Proper Planning is Essential to Protect Animals and Science

Last month, both the National Institutes of Health and the US Food and Drug Administration announced plans to phase out the use of animals in scientific research. The Animal Welfare...

Animals in Laboratories

Animals in laboratories are generally used for three distinct scientific purposes: Research (studies meant to advance scientific knowledge by learning something new), testing (toxicity testing of chemicals, such as those...

AWI Funds Welfare Refinement Efforts

Every year, AWI provides financial support for the creation and implementation of “refinement” initiatives meant to advance the welfare of animals used in research through improved housing, husbandry, handling, or...

Effects of Cognitive Testing on Salivary Cortisol Measures in Lemurs

Cognitive research using nonhuman primates is common, yet little is known about the effects of cognitive research on the animals themselves. This project, funded by an AWI Refinement Research Award,...