ABSTRACT
Total abolition of the need for animal experimentation is a long-term goal because, with few exceptions, alternative approaches and methodologies are not yet developed to the point where they conceivably could be considered as adequate total replacements. More effort should be put into the development and validation of alternative techniques. The search for alternatives to the use of animals in research and testing remains a valid goal of researchers, but the chance that alternatives will completely replace animals in the foreseeable future is nil. The immediate prospect for a significant reduction in the scale of live animal experimentation stems from a reappraisal of current animal procedures, better experimental design and analysis, better use of available data on the toxicity of previously investigated compounds, and refinement of the questions being asked in toxicological investigations. Techniques have been developed that use intact skin isolated from both animals and man.
