Latest news from the NC3Rs: June 2023

An animal-free organoid model has won the International 3Rs Prize. The prestigious annual award, sponsored by GSK, recognises a paper that describes outstanding and original work with major 3Rs impacts.

Register for the 3Rs Prize award event

Thursday 20 July, 16.00 – 17.00 (BST)

Hear from the winner, Dr Lisa Wagar, about how she aims to streamline vaccine development for global respiratory pathogens of concern using her entirely animal-free tonsil organoid model. Professor Alex Frangi and Dr Ali Sarrami-Foroushani will also present the first ever in silico trial for a medical device from their highly commended paper.

A preprint of the RIVER recommendations (Reporting In Vitro Experiments Responsibly) is now available. This new set of reporting standards for in vitro experiments aim to improve the transparency and reliability of published in vitro research.

Visit our new resource page to find out about technologies and tools that allow the automatic monitoring of animal behaviour and activity. This includes our recently published article with colleagues at the Mary Lyon Centre (MRC Harwell) providing an overview of key initiatives that supported the adoption of these tools and champion the 3Rs. 

The latest webinar series from a cross-Europe 3Rs centre collaboration put a focus on culture of care. Presentation recordings from the expert speakers are now available to watch again. The talks cover putting a culture of care into practice in different research environments, how to measure impact and progress as well as the issue of compassion fatigue.

We are recruiting a Regional Programme Manager to help us maximise support for the 3Rs in academic institutions and bridge the gap between the development and use of 3Rs approaches. This role will work collaboratively within our dynamic regional team, as well as leading specific projects, to support the UK academic community’s commitment to the 3Rs.

Funded by the NC3Rs through the Tat-Fit CRACK IT Challenge, Fluid Pharma Ltd have developed tamoxifen micropellets encapsulated by a taste-masking coating that are compatible with common rodent feed, to refine the production of transgenic rodents. This technology means that the tamoxifen can be consumed voluntarily and avoids the need for more invasive delivery methods.

Monday 3 July – Wednesday 5 July, Glasgow, Scotland

Attendees at the 19th World Congress of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology in Glasgow next month can hear from the NC3Rs at a ‘careers bootcamp’ on reproducible research and a session on embedding the 3Rs in the use of animals for testing of biologics. Conference registration is still open.

• Changing research practice: How can I make my research more reproducible? Monday 3 July, 9.30 – 10.45, Dr Nathalie Percie du Sert (Head of Experimental Design and Reporting).
• Global strategy for accelerating the implementation of alternatives methods (3Rs) in the quality control of vaccines and other biologics. Wednesday 5 July, 13.35 – 16.00, Dr Anthony Holmes (Director of Science and Technology) and Dr Elliot Lilley (Programme Manager – 3Rs in Vaccine Batch Release and Quality Control Testing).

Tuesday 18 July, 9.00 – 10.00 (BST)

Our Experimental Design Assistant (EDA) tool helps researchers at any level design robust in vivo experiments. Following a presentation on the key aspects of the online tool, Dr Esther Pearl (NC3Rs Experimental Design Programme Manager) will answer questions on how you can use the EDA to design and plan your next study. Limited spaces are available on a first come first served basis and attendees are eligible for CPD points.

Wednesday 19 July, 14.00 – 15.00 (BST)

We are excited to launch our new Technology Patn3Ring webinar series that provides a platform for academics and SMEs to showcase their 3Rs technologies. Each technology pitch will highlight a unique opportunity for collaboration.

The inaugural webinar will showcase:

• Advanced isolated living organ systems to de-risk preclinical research (PBLBio)
• Artificial intelligence-driven predictive toxicity (ConsoneAI)
• An in vitro platform to assess deep lung toxicity (ImmuOne)

Tuesday 19 – Wednesday 20 September, central London and online

Registration is now open to attend a two-day workshop showcasing the outputs from our project to review animal use requirements in WHO biologics guidelines focusing on quality control and batch release testing. The workshop will highlight the findings and recommendations for inclusion of the 3Rs from the last three-years’ work. 

Tuesday 19 – Wednesday 20 September, Nottingham

Modelling the tumour microenvironment in vitro is key to developing models that can replace the use of animals in cancer research. The British Association for Cancer Research is holding a workshop on 3D cell-based models on day one of their Tumour Microenvironment Meeting. The workshop will explore the state-of-the-art in modelling different aspects of the tumour microenvironment, innovative technologies to interrogate these models and how they can be applied to translate research to the clinic.