NIH to Retire Chimpanzees from Medical Research

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced on Wednesday that it would retire most of its chimpanzees from biomedical research. This is an important step in the eventual full phase out of research chimpanzees in government funded studies. Francis S. Collins, NIH Director said that in the coming months, all but 50 of the animals will be transferred to sanctuaries. According to the NIH, the closest relatives of human beings “deserve special respect. It has not yet been clarified where the animals will be transferred but there are 150 spaces currently available for the chimps. Once in the sanctuaries, the animals are protected and cannot be used in research again.

However, monkeys such as the rhesus macaques that are also being used in biomedical research are not affected by the decision at all. Director Collins clarified that only chimpanzees are covered since the NIH still needs the other animals in their ongoing studies.

Nearly endangered

Two weeks prior to the NIH announcement, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service forwarded a proposal to place the wild and captive chimpanzee on the list of endangered species. Captive chimpanzees were listed previously as “threatened,” but this designation does not provide much protection for the species. The US Fish and Wildlife proposal was lauded by animal rights advocates such as the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, The Humane Society of the United States, and the pioneering Jane Goodall Institute.

Chimp Haven in Louisiana is one of sanctuaries where chimpanzees have been transferred. Their upkeep costs the NIH $2 million annually. The agency plans to ask Congress to provide $3 million for next year. The US Congress allotted $30 million in 2000 for the Chimp Act.

In the wild, human encroachment has led to dwindling numbers of chimpanzees that used to prosper in their native habitat. Less than 300,000 now remain. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources reported that since 1900 more than a million chimpanzees have disappeared in the wild.

Not justifiable

The NIH started phasing out funding on research chimps two years ago but at present, 400 chimpanzees are still housed in a number of facilities scattered around the United States. The 50 animals that the agency will keep are on retainer and will be involved only in future crucial studies that cannot be done using alternative methodology. Research studies that are yet to be completed (within a year or two) are allowed to use the apes that are already participating in the study.

In 2011, the Institute of Medicine stated that invasive medical research involving chimpanzees is not justifiable anymore. This current decision from the NIH took a longer time than expected.

Not necessary

Director Collins said in a statement that the advent of new technologies and research methodologies have rendered the use of animals in biomedical research largely unnecessary. Chimpanzees have helped researchers in studies which benefited many Americans. The decision to retire these “special animals” was hailed as a milestone by Director Collins. The DNA of these apes is 98% similar to human beings and this is the reason why they were essential in biomedical studies. The ones housed in NIH facilities have spent most or all of their lives in research laboratories all across America.

Photo Credit: Chimpanzees photographed at the Gombe Stream National Park