O uso de animais na pesquisa e no ensino: uma visão dos discentes das áreas de Saúde e Biológicas da UFCG, Campus de Cajazeiras - PB.

Abstract

Animal use is a common topic in books, articles, magazines, academic works and within public communication. Whether or not animals are dispensable in academic and research activities are amongst the strongest discussions. The present study aimed to evaluate the conception of students regarding animal use and alternative methods during scientific and educational experiments. The study employed a descriptive, quali-quantitative approach with students of the 1st and 7th periods of three undergraduate courses (Biology, Medicine and Nursing) from a federal institution located in Cajazeiras, PB, Brazil. A questionnaire was applied to evaluate the knowledge and position of respondents regarding animal use in research and education. Results indicate that most students are inclined to accept animal use in research and education, and that they participated on academic activities involving animal models. Nevertheless, a significant majority considered animal use to be dispensable, and that alternative methods may successfully replace the need to use animals in these academic activities.