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EARA Newsletter

April 14th 2025

EARA News Digest 2025 - Week 16


Welcome to your Monday morning update, from EARA, on the latest news in biomedical science, policy and openness on animal research. 

This week: Monkeys reveal clue to Mpox outbreaks; 3D-printed skin for testing cosmetics; Patient Discovery Project webpage launch.

Monkeys infected by Mpox reveal clue to outbreaks

An international research team have traced the Mpox virus outbreak in monkeys to a species of wild rodent, identified as a new intermediate host.

Mpox - formerly known as monkeypox - is a virus endemic to Central and West Africa, where sporadic outbreaks occur in both humans and non-human primates. Despite rodents being long suspected as the natural reservoirs of the virus, direct evidence remained elusive.

The research team led by Helmholtz Institute for One Health, Austria, with the Tai Chimpanzee Project, Côte d'Ivoire, traced an mpox outbreak in sooty mangabeys displaying signs of mpox in Taï National Park.

Over the course of several weeks, at least 26 of the 80 mangabeys in the habituated group showed lesions and swollen lymph nodes, and four infant monkeys died.

Researchers analysed 170 monkey samples and found the mpox virus strain was nearly identical to one found in a rope squirrel three kilometers away and several weeks earlier. DNA traces of the same squirrel species were found in the monkeys’ faeces, and field observations documented a mangabey consuming those species of squirrels. This suggests the rope squirrel as the likely outbreak source.

Fabian Leendertz from the Helmholtz Institute, first author of the study in pre-print, told Science: “This is one of the first direct, genetically confirmed cases of mpox spilling over from a wild animal to a non-human primate.”

A new mRNA vaccine for mpox, developed by Moderna, is showing promise in monkey studies, but this study enhances the understanding how these cross-species outbreaks actually start.

 

 

3D-printed skin offers promising alternative to animal testing in cosmetics

Researchers from Austria and India have developed an innovative 3D-printed skin model capable of evaluating the absorption and safety of new cosmetic products and ingredients.

This new model aims to address ongoing challenges in testing substances such as nano-sized ingredients – nanoparticles - commonly found in products like sunscreens. While the EU has banned animal testing for cosmetic products since 2004—and for cosmetic ingredients since 2009—there remains a need for reliable, animal-free methods to assess product safety.

Research teams, from Graz University of Technology (Austria) and Vellore Institute of Technology (India), developed a 3D-printed skin replica using a specially formulated hydrogel (a water-based gel). This material supports the survival and growth of human skin cells for more than three weeks, allowing the printed model to closely mimic the structure and function of real human skin.

The 3D printing approach ensures that the model replicates not only the physical layers of skin but also its biological functions, enabling more accurate testing of ingredient toxicity and absorption. By providing a viable environment for living skin cells, the hydrogel allows researchers to observe cellular responses to various compounds in conditions that resemble real human tissue.

“We are now working together to further optimise the hydrogel formulations and validate their usefulness as a substitute for animal experiments,” said Prof. Karin Stana Kleinschek, who co-led the study.

 

 

New Patient Discovery Project website highlights patients' role in animal research conversations

EARA has launched a new feature webpage to showcase the Patient Discovery Project, an initiative designed to increase understanding of animal research among patient communities.

The page brings together insights and case studies from events in the Netherlands and Portugal where patients engaged directly with researchers to learn more about the scientific process and the reasons why animals are used when no alternatives exist.

From Parkinon’s patients visiting rodent and primate facilities in the Netherlands to people living with diabetes visiting research labs in Portugal, the Patient Discovery Project demonstrates how informed dialogue can foster mutual respect and trust between scientists and the people most affected by disease.

The new page also explores the future of the initiative, with more Discovery Days planned across Europe in 2025 and the formation of a Patient Advocacy Network to ensure patient voices are heard at national and EU level.

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