Review article
30 Jun 2017
Review article | 30 Jun 2017
Use of nonhuman primates in obstructive lung disease research – is it required?
Franziska Dahlmann1,2 and Katherina Sewald2
Franziska Dahlmann and Katherina Sewald
Franziska Dahlmann1,2 and Katherina Sewald2
- 1German Primate Center GmbH, Infection Pathology Unit, Kellnerweg 4, 37077
Göttingen, Germany
- 2Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine, Preclinical
Pharmacology and Immunology, Biomedical Research in Endstage and Obstructive
Lung Disease Hannover (BREATH), Member of the German Center for Lung
Research (DZL), Nikolai-Fuchs-Straße 1, 30625 Hanover, Germany
- 1German Primate Center GmbH, Infection Pathology Unit, Kellnerweg 4, 37077
Göttingen, Germany
- 2Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine, Preclinical
Pharmacology and Immunology, Biomedical Research in Endstage and Obstructive
Lung Disease Hannover (BREATH), Member of the German Center for Lung
Research (DZL), Nikolai-Fuchs-Straße 1, 30625 Hanover, Germany
Correspondence: Franziska Dahlmann (fdahlmann@dpz.eu)
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Received: 29 Mar 2017 – Accepted: 05 May 2017 – Published: 30 Jun 2017
In times of increasing costs for health insurances, obstructive lung diseases are a burden for both the patients and the economy. Pulmonary symptoms of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are similar; nevertheless, the diseases differ in pathophysiology and therapeutic approaches. Novel therapeutics are continuously developed, and nonhuman primates (NHPs) provide valuable models for investigating novel biologicals regarding efficacy and safety.
This review discusses the role of nonhuman primate models for drug development in asthma and COPD and investigates whether alternative methods are able to prevent animal experiments.