Posted inAnimal Research, Health & Welfare

University of Wisconsin to reprise controversial monkey studies

UW-Madison psychiatry professor Ned Kalin received approval to conduct the first experiment on campus in more than 30 years that will intentionally deprive newborn monkeys of their mothers, a practice designed to impact a primate’s psychological well-being. The protocol drew unusual debate from oversight committees, and it has raised questions about the degree of suffering acceptable in an experimental design with uncertain outcomes.

Posted inAnimal Research, Health & Welfare

UW animal research oversight committees strive for consensus

“I think everyone who does animal research feels they’re balancing the need for and desire to alleviate human suffering and to minimize animal suffering,” says behavioral neuroscientist Craig Berridge. But others are skeptical that committees overseeing the use of animals can rigorous evaluate the ethics of the work.

Posted inEconomy, Environment

Wisconsin’s booming grape crop at risk from herbicide drift

Grape farmers in Wisconsin are facing a growing threat, and in many cases it is coming from their own neighbors. Herbicides that are used to kill weeds in crops such as corn and soybeans can be deadly to other plants, including grapes. Food or wine grape vines exposed to the chemicals may shrivel up, turn colors and grow strange, elongated new leaves.