Production and Three Rs

This section contains information and resources related to the use of animals to produce biologics for scientific purposes. These include:

• fetal bovine serum; and
• monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies.

Fetal bovine serum (FBS)

Animal serum is routinely added to culture media as a source of nutrients and growth factors. Technical disadvantages to using serum include the undefined nature of serum, batch-to-batch variability in composition, and the risk of contamination. Since well-defined synthetic media are now readily available, these should be used whenever possible.

The preferred source of serum for cell culture is from calf fetuses (fetal bovine serum, commonly called FBS). FBS is prepared from blood extracted from fetuses removed from cows found pregnant at slaughter. The fetus is removed during evisceration and blood is extracted via cardiac puncture without anaesthesia. Recent literature has provided evidence of fetal sensitivity to pain and growing evidence of resistance to anoxia in mammalian fetuses. In addition, although low blood oxygen levels in utero have been shown to suppress consciousness, there now appears to be valid concern that this suppression of conscious awareness is reversed on exposure to air. There is then a real possibility that evisceration, and subsequent lung inflation, would expose fetuses to the experience of pain as they are bled out through cardiac puncture.

Therefore, the CCAC recommends that where fetuses are used for the preparation of FBS (for cell cultures which cannot be maintained in synthetic media), that they be treated with the same respect for life accorded to other vertebrate species. This should include ensuring that the calf is prevented from inflating its lungs with air and breathing, and thus gaining consciousness, during the procedure to collect blood for fetal bovine serum.

(This section has been adapted from Focus on Alternatives.)

For more information on FBS, the following resources may be useful:

• European Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods (ECVAM) (2008). ESAC Statement on the use of FCS and other animal-derived supplements.

  - To read the statement of the ECVAM Scientific Advisory Committee (ESAC), click on the above link and select "Publications", then "ESAC Statements".

• Mellor D.J. (2003) Guidelines for the humane slaughter of the fetuses of pregnant ruminants. Surveillance 30:26-28.
• Mellor D.J. & Diesch T.J. (2006) Onset of sentience: the potential for suffering in fetal and newborn farm animals. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 100:48-57.
• Newman C. (2003) Serum-free cell culture - the ethical, scientific and economic choice. The Biomedical Scientist , September : 941-942.
• van der Valk J., Mellor D., Brands R., Fischer R., Gruber F., Gstraunthaler G., Hellebrekers L., Hyllner J., Jonker F.H., Prieto P., Thalen M. & Baumans V. (2004) The humane collection of fetal bovine serum and possibilities for serum-free cell and tissue culture. Toxicology In Vitro 18:1-12.

  - This article includes a fetal calf slaughter welfare protocol.

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