title: Future activities: ECVAM and the quality control of biologicals.
abstract: ECVAM's activities in the field of biologicals have contributed in many ways to the successful incorporation of Three Rs methods, as summarised elsewhere in these proceedings. The progress achieved is impressive, but large numbers of animals are still needed in order to meet the requirements stipulated by various regulations. ECVAM's activities in this area should therefore be continued and extended. Besides the well-established organisation of ECVAM workshops and contributions to conferences, further prevalidation and validation studies should be funded. In addition, studies on refinement, and training courses on validated and well-established Three Rs methods, could be initiated. There is a need for more communication and information exchange, especially between regulators and industry concerning the Three Rs. ECVAM could provide a suitable forum for such activities. An ECVAM Biologicals Task Force should be established in order to define a list of priorities.
authors.affiliation: Paul Ehrlich Institute, Paul Ehrlich Strasse 51-59, 63225 Langen, Germany.
authors.forename: Klaus
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Cussler
authors.forename: Marlies
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Halder
authors.forename: Coenraad
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hendriksen
mesh_terms: D000826:Animal Testing Alternatives / Q000193:education; D000818:Animals; D001688:Biological Products / Q000592:standards* / Q000633:toxicity; D004493:Education; D005062:European Union; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D033181:Information Dissemination; D011786:Quality Control; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018570:Risk Assessment; D018675:Toxicity Tests
chemical_list: D001688:Biological Products