近日，中国实验室动物研究小组和英国3R计划（即替代-Replacement、减少-Reduction和优化-Refinement实验动物）国家中心（NC3Rs）的工作人员在中国举行会议。会议中，中国首次公布了对待实验动物的国家标准草案，并将在2016年年底正式实行。国家标准草案中设定了有关动物安乐死、疼痛治疗、运输、居住条件、养殖设施和培训等多方面的要求。

中国科学家们曾一再强调，由于国内缺乏对待实验动物的国家标准规范，导致一些国际性的研究合作总是无法正常开展，因为其他国家的科学家们不愿参与包含不受人道主义保护的动物在内的研究。此外，虐待实验室动物事件最近屡屡遭曝光，因此国内反对虐待实验室动物的浪潮也愈发高涨。中国科学家希望这一国家标准将会改善实验动物的生活条件，并且促进中国与国际在学术领域的研究合作。
中国医学科学院医学实验动物研究所所长秦川表示，新的国家标准基于国际上对待动物的最佳实践标准。虽然中国此前并未规定相应的国家标准，但国内多省都可证实国内实验室的做法基本符合全球公认标准。不过，国内的实验室还是需要国家标准来统一战线，明确如何才是对动物最好的做法。

附：英文版

China finally setting guidelines for treating lab animals

China has released its first national standards governing the treatment of laboratory animals, and scientists hope the guidelines will improve both conditions for animals and China’s prospects for international research collaborations.
The draft standards were posted last week for public comment and could be implemented by the end of this year. They cover such topics as euthanasia, pain management, transport, and housing. The standards also set requirements for breeding facilities and personnel training. Chinese scientists have said the lack of national regulations has stymied some international collaborations because scientists in other countries can be reluctant to engage in research involving animals if they are not covered by humane protections. In addition, there is growing domestic opposition to the mistreatment of lab animals because of recently documented incidents of abuse.
The new standards are based on international best practices, says Qin Chuan, professor of veterinary medicine and director of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences’s Institute of Laboratory Animal Sciences (ILAS) in Beijing. Though China has not had national standards previously, she says, most provinces certify that Chinese labs meet what are essentially globally accepted practices. Qin said national standards are needed bring all labs into line with what is best for the animals.
In 2014, China abolished a requirement that domestic cosmetic companies test their products on animals in order to gain approval for sale in the Chinese market. Both animal rights campaigners and consumers had scorned the old regulation, though there remains some confusion on how the current requirements apply to international producers.
China’s government has been under increasing pressure to go beyond cosmetics with national standards to cover a large and growing field. According to ILAS, China uses roughly 20 million animals—mostly mice, but also large numbers of dogs, rabbits, and nonhuman primates—each year in research. More than 300,000 people work in the lab animal industry in China.
The draft was made public during a conference held in China with Chinese lab animal research groups and the U.K. National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) in London. “It's encouraging that the 3Rs are right at the forefront of scientific discussions on animal use in research in China,” Mark Prescott, NC3Rs head of research management and policy, said in a statement. He added that for developing scientific powerhouses like China the challenge is to foster awareness of and action on lab animal issues quickly enough to match the growing research investment.