CAAT Celebrates 30 Years

Thirty years ago, when the cosmetics industry was under fire for animal use in routine safety testing, the Johns Hopkins Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT) was founded. Since then, CAAT has promoted alternatives to animal use in research, product safety testing and education. Its guiding principles are the three Rs: replace animal tests when possible, reduce the number of animals to the minimum necessary and refine methods to reduce pain and distress.

Since CAAT's inception, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of animal replacement technologies, especially those involving in vitro cell cultures. CAAT will celebrate its 30th anniversary at the 8th World Congress on Alternatives and Animal Use in the Life Sciences in August, in Montreal. The first World Congress, held in 1993 in Baltimore, was organized by CAAT.