basic research

Role of Basic Research

How important is basic research?

One of the critical issues when we look to the justification of the use of animals in a particular project is the predicted benefit from that study. When a project is clearly directed towards solving an identified problem, it is possible to show the link between the results and the predicted outcomes. However, the exploration of ideas in an attempt to understand basic mechanisms, rather than for a directed application, provides the building blocks which make advances in knowledge possible.

When deciding whether or not the use of animals is ethically justified in basic (exploratory) research, two important issues should be considered:

Should we value knowledge for its own sake? If we do, then the acquisition of knowledge is recognised by society as a benefit.

Can we show how valuable the application of basic research has been in the advancement of human and animal health?

As a number of the examples in this Problem have shown, advances in our understanding of biology and the processes of disease have occurred through bringing together information from a variety of sources. In many instances, the scientist may have no way of predicting the relevance of the results of a particular experiment to future developments. For example, when in 1909, Peyton Rous inoculated tumour cells from one chicken into another and demonstrated the relationship between tumours and viruses, little did he realise that his studies would be the springboard, some sixty years later, to major advances in our understanding of the development and treatment of cancer. Following the discovery of the interaction between tumour viruses and genetic material in the 1970’s, today we are developing gene therapies to treat a number of cancers.

Also, we should recognise that technological advances have often played a key role in new discoveries and the development of new treatments. For example, molecular biological techniques have opened opportunities to study cellular processes at a level not previously possible and the engineering of new biocompatible materials has played a critical role in the advancement of cardiac surgery and orthopaedic implants.

Not all basic research will lead to new discoveries and it is reasonable to ask what is the probability of such studies being applied to solve a problem in the future. One investigation which sought to evaluate the impact of basic research in ten key clinical areas concluded that in approximately 40% of studies which were later judged as being essential for clinical advances, the scientists had not directed the research to specific clinical applications. This is an indicative figure only, but it is probably a reasonable guide if we ask whether or not basic research involving the use of animals is likely to result in some improvement in the health and well being of humans or animals in the future.