Tel Aviv dental school accused of testing on humans and animals
The Tel Aviv University medical school has been accused of testing humans and animals as part of a research project to assess and stimulate bone growth with dental implants.
Suspicions arose when a photograph of two frightened kittens in the university’s laboratory was received by Behind Closed Doors, a charity which is designed to protect animals and campaign for their rights during scientific experiments.
After the photograph was released, an enquiry into the practise of the medical school was launched and further evidence surrounding the maltreatment of both animals and humans was gathered; amongst the findings were a letter of complaint to the police and a letter of complaint to the medical school, which had apparently been forged.
The photograph of the kittens is said to have to been taken by a hidden camera in March 2009; according to Anat Refua, from Behind Closed Doors, they were in a tiny, dirty room and the chart on the wall suggested that they had been kept there for at least eight months. Investigations carried out by the charity found that the vast majority of research using cats had been conducted by the university’s dental school.
Another investigation found that Professor Zvi Artzi was in charge of most of the experiments; he said that all the research he had undertaken had been approved and cleared by the university and the animals had been treated well during the experiments. Despite Professor Artzi’s claims, the university decided to stop breeding cats following the inquiry.
The latest incident is not the first at the medical school; previous studies are said to have involved comparisons between cats and humans.
Join this Discussion