Initiatives on the Use of Animal and Animal Testing Alternatives in Research
Activities
Animal testing is indispensable for researching and developing drug products and medical equipment to verify the safety and efficacy of those drugs and devices.
To conduct animal experiments in our laboratory properly from the aspect of science and animal care, ROHTO sets out institutional rules according to applicable laws and guidelines, including the Act on Welfare and Management of Animals ("Animal Law"), the Standards Relating to the Care and Keeping and Reducing Pain of Laboratory Animals, and the Basic Policies for the Conduct of Animal Experiments in Research Institutions under the Jurisdiction of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
In addition, ROHTO has the Committee for Animal Ethics Committee to examine
and ensure all animal experiment protocols are developed according to the
"Three Rs" principles: "Refinement" to minimize or
eliminate pain and distress in animals, "Replacement" to replace
with alternative means, and "Reduction" to reduce the number
of animals used. Further, we conduct a self-assessment to verify the properness
of implementing animal testing.
In connection with those initiatives, our laboratory periodically undergoes
on-site inspection by an independent institution (the Center for Accreditation
of Laboratory Animal Care and Use of the Japan Pharmaceutical Information
Center). The laboratory is accredited as a facility that properly conducts
animal experiments.
ROHTO is advancing product creation with alternative methods following
the principle of not using animal testing for developing cosmetics (including
cosmeceutical products.) *
As initiatives for alternatives to animal experiments, we are moving research and development activities forward proactively using the following methods: testing with human volunteers, such as human patch test and Repeated Insult Patch Test (RIPT), "in silico" prediction of toxicity by the computer simulation and data analysis using computers and information technology, "in vitro" evaluation method using cultured cells, and "in chemico" evaluation method evaluating reactivity of biological and chemical substances with analytical instruments and other equipment.
To continue offering products and services that contribute to our customers'
Well-being, ROHTO recognizes the necessity of pursuing our initiatives
to research and study alternative methods for animal testing.
*However, the cases where we are accountable to society for the safety
of products and where any country's administrative agency requires animal
testing are excluded.
Initiatives to Stop Animal Testing－Initiatives for Animal Testing and Alternatives
Since January 27, 2016, ROHTO has neither conducted nor used an outside
contractor to conduct animal experiments for developing cosmetic products
(including cosmeceutical products.)