Animal research is a favourite topic when teachers are looking for a sure-fire way to get their students interested in the ethics of science, but are schools getting all they can from this complex, sometimes difficult, always fascinating subject?

This August, Understanding Animal Research invited 10 science teachers to spend three days at the National Science Learning Centre in York to to consider what resources teachers need to get to grips with animal research and to start the development of the first animal research educational resource created by teachers, for teachers, and a first step towards making animal research part of the secondary education of every young person in the UK.

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The recently published Annual Report (2009) of the Animals Scientific Procedures Inspectorate and Division highlights progress towards suitable alternatives to replace the use of mice in the testing for toxins in shellfish.

The Inspectorate has been working with the Food Standards Agency (which has funded a large amount of work on developing alternative methods) and the UK testing laboratories to find validated replacements for these mouse tests. A chemical method has been developed that is effective in detecting PSP in mussels, the shellfish species that is most frequently tested. This new method has therefore replaced mice in the majority of tests for PSP toxins, thus significantly reducing the number of animals that are used.

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The UK government announced this morning that the number of animal procedures in 2009 fell by 1% compared with the previous year. The total number of procedures started last year was just over 3.6 million, almost all using rodents, fish or birds.

The number of genetically modified animals bred for research continues to rise, by 10% last year. For the first time the number of procedures involving genetically altered animals (which includes GM and naturally occurring mutants) exceeded the number of procedures using normal animals.

It is this trend in GM - mostly mice but also fish and rats - which has been driving the increase in animal research since 2000. The overall trend, despite the small fall in 2009, is still upwards. The total number of animal procedures was one third higher in 2009 than in 2000. However, investment in UK biomedical research over the same period doubled.

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Grants worth £4 million have just been announced for 13 science projects that aim to minimise the use of laboratory animals and improve their welfare.

The latest grants, awarded by NC3Rs, fund research dedicated to the three Rs: reducing, replacing and refining the use of animals in research. To see current examples of the three Rs in action, go to our What R you watching? activity.

The grants could have an impact on the use of animals in diverse areas of research such as toxicity testing, breeding GM mice, multiple sclerosis, cancers, epilepsy and pain studies. The animals that may be impacted include fruit flies, fish, ferrets, rodents and monkeys. Summaries of all 13 projects can be found on the NC3Rs website.

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