Response from University Communications about Message to Chancellor Rebecca Blank about Maternal Deprivation Research at UW-Madison
From: University Communications <[email protected]>
Date: Sat, Oct 4, 2014 at 7:03 AM
Subject: Your message about research at UW-Madison
To: Rebecca Blank <[email protected]>
Thank you for your interest in research at the University of
Wisconsin–Madison.
The planned research with young monkeys is aimed at understanding how
adversity early in life influences the development of the brain. That
knowledge — coupled with clinical work with human patients — could provide
the basis for new and better treatments for people suffering from anxiety,
depression, bipolar disorder and other psychological conditions that lead to
undue suffering for tens of millions of people in the United States alone.
Critics of this mission draw comparisons between the modern study and the
important work done at UW–Madison decades ago by Harry Harlow. It is true
that the current study, like Harlow’s work, is aimed at better understanding
how the brain and behavior change when early infant environments are
disrupted. But the current study is also fundamentally different from
Harlow’s work and recent petitions have distorted the facts of the work. The
infant monkeys are reared with human contact, with other infant monkeys,
with toys and environment enrichment. And advances in brain imaging and
chemistry allow modern UW–Madison researchers to address basic causes and
associations between brain development and mental illness that Harlow would
never have been able explore.
A detailed description of the research and its rationale can be found here:
http://animalresearch.wisc.edu/content/uploads/2013/02/narrative021213.pdf
The way animal research is undertaken on our campus has also changed a great
deal in the decades since Harlow was active in Madison. This vital anxiety
research has been assessed by several university committees tasked with
making sure that potentially beneficial research subjects the fewest animals
to the least invasive possible measures. As with all animal research on
campus, specially trained veterinarians will care for the monkeys involved
and ensure that all the work is done in accordance with federal regulations
enforced by the National Institutes for Health and the U.S. Department of
Agriculture.
We remain committed to the humane conduct of important biomedical research.
We appreciate your willingness to consider all sides of the story before
judging our work in light of rhetoric clearly intended to mislead and
inflame emotions on the sensitive issue of animal-based research.
University Communications
University of Wisconsin-Madison
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