Gale Opposing Viewpoints
12/17/11
Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context - Document
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Using Monkeys in Medical Experimentation Is Justifiable
Animal Experimentation , 2009
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"Hot Science: Monkeys and Brain Research," RDS (Research Defence Society), www.rds-online.org.uk, accessed June 23, 2008. Reproduced by permission. The Research Defence Society (RDS) is the UK organization representing medical researchers in the public debate about the use of animals in medical research. …show more content…
The complex nature and connectivity of these neural systems in humans is much closer to that found in the monkey brain than in other animals. For example, certain parts of the brain such as the cerebral cortex are poorly developed in other animals. And the temporal and frontal lobes of the cortex, which are involved in functions such as perception, attention, memory and planning in the human brain, are underdeveloped in lower animals. There is very strong evidence that there are structural, functional, behavioural and neurobiological similarities between humans and monkeys. Research into neurological disorders involving higher functions and brain structures such as the frontal lobes depends much more on studies of monkeys than of other animals. For example, disorders such as depression, schizophrenia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, drug addiction and obsessive compulsive disorder all involve malfunctioning of the frontal lobes and their interactions with other parts of the brain. This is also true of conditions such as head injury, Parkinson's and Huntington's diseases, stroke and some types of dementia. Last century, monkeys were essential in the development of the polio vaccine, which …show more content…
It affects one person in 10 over the age of 65 and almost half those over the age of 85. It begins in the temporal lobe and related brain areas. The development of Alzheimer's disease is thought to be associated with the death of certain brain cells (known as cholinergic cells) due to the build-up of an insoluble protein called amyloid-beta (A-beta) to form white plaques, and the formation of tangles of a second protein, tau, inside the sufferers' brain cells. Brain cells cannot regenerate, probably because of the absence of a substance called nerve growth factor. In monkeys this substance has been shown to prevent the death of brain cells and stimulate connections between them. Studies of monkeys led to understanding of the entire nerve circuitry involved in human Parkinson's disease. It is generally impossible to mimic all aspects of a complex human disorder such as schizophrenia or Alzheimer's disease with animals by producing symptoms that exactly match those of the human disorder. However, it is possible to mimic some aspects and some of the resulting symptoms. For example, damage to parts of the cerebral cortex and hippocampus in monkeys—areas affected by Alzheimer's disease in humans—causes symptoms such as memory loss and can be used to assess novel anti-Alzheimer's drug
Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context - Document
Apollo Library
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Using Monkeys in Medical Experimentation Is Justifiable
Animal Experimentation , 2009
Tools
Bookmark Share Citation Tools Print
"Hot Science: Monkeys and Brain Research," RDS (Research Defence Society), www.rds-online.org.uk, accessed June 23, 2008. Reproduced by permission. The Research Defence Society (RDS) is the UK organization representing medical researchers in the public debate about the use of animals in medical research. …show more content…
The complex nature and connectivity of these neural systems in humans is much closer to that found in the monkey brain than in other animals. For example, certain parts of the brain such as the cerebral cortex are poorly developed in other animals. And the temporal and frontal lobes of the cortex, which are involved in functions such as perception, attention, memory and planning in the human brain, are underdeveloped in lower animals. There is very strong evidence that there are structural, functional, behavioural and neurobiological similarities between humans and monkeys. Research into neurological disorders involving higher functions and brain structures such as the frontal lobes depends much more on studies of monkeys than of other animals. For example, disorders such as depression, schizophrenia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, drug addiction and obsessive compulsive disorder all involve malfunctioning of the frontal lobes and their interactions with other parts of the brain. This is also true of conditions such as head injury, Parkinson's and Huntington's diseases, stroke and some types of dementia. Last century, monkeys were essential in the development of the polio vaccine, which …show more content…
It affects one person in 10 over the age of 65 and almost half those over the age of 85. It begins in the temporal lobe and related brain areas. The development of Alzheimer's disease is thought to be associated with the death of certain brain cells (known as cholinergic cells) due to the build-up of an insoluble protein called amyloid-beta (A-beta) to form white plaques, and the formation of tangles of a second protein, tau, inside the sufferers' brain cells. Brain cells cannot regenerate, probably because of the absence of a substance called nerve growth factor. In monkeys this substance has been shown to prevent the death of brain cells and stimulate connections between them. Studies of monkeys led to understanding of the entire nerve circuitry involved in human Parkinson's disease. It is generally impossible to mimic all aspects of a complex human disorder such as schizophrenia or Alzheimer's disease with animals by producing symptoms that exactly match those of the human disorder. However, it is possible to mimic some aspects and some of the resulting symptoms. For example, damage to parts of the cerebral cortex and hippocampus in monkeys—areas affected by Alzheimer's disease in humans—causes symptoms such as memory loss and can be used to assess novel anti-Alzheimer's drug