In response to a complaint by five primatology graduate students, U of T has suspended the use of non-human primates for use in all scientific research.
The issue gained traction following the death of two crab-eating macaques after seven years of experimentation while in captivity at the Faculty of Dentistry. The primates had been used for research investigating movement and pain in the human mouth.
Used to study the brain’s mechanisms for sensory and motor functions in the face and mouth, the macaques had electrodes implanted in their brains to stimulate and record activity. The lead researcher of the study insisted that the monkeys were never in pain.
The graduate students requested that the macaques be released at a sanctuary upon completion of the experiment. The request was refused because the brains of the macaques had to be dissected in order to verify that the correct areas of the brain had been stimulated.
“It was always the intention for this study that, in the end, the animals needed to be sacrificed,” said Peter Lewis, U of T’s associate vice-president, research in an interview with The Globe and Mail.
However, the students maintained that the crab-eating macaques possess a high level of intelligence and emotion, and their living conditions and treatment during the experiment were unconscionable. The students pointed to evidence suggesting that the primates are capable of using tools, like axe-shaped stones to crack open food such as oysters, bivalves, and crabs.
The use of non-human primates in scientific research has raised concerns about ethical boundaries in the past.
According to the Globe, larger Canadian universities haven’t housed research primates for decades with the exception of the University of British Columbia, which is currently carrying out experiements on a few small monkeys.
