The Henkel AG & Co. KGaA, Germany, provides TiHo with Phenion-brand tissue models that mimic human skin - thus supporting the training of veterinary students. In doing so, the Phenion team is living out its vision to advocate for the elimination of animal testing around the globe. "It's great to see alternatives to animal testing being part of the academic curriculum. This will increase students' awareness of the scientific challenges of replacing animal testing," says Dr. Karsten Mewes, Senior Manager Alternative Methods and Tissue Engineering at Henkel.
The elective course "Corrosive or not? Career prospects in veterinary medicine" taught by Professor Dr. Bettina Seeger from the Institute of Food Quality and Safety at TiHo offers students the opportunity to perform an animal-free skin corrosion test using Henkel's epiCS epithelial models. Today, such skin models help eliminate the need to use animals for toxicological safety testing of chemicals in this field.
Seeger said of the event: "I am delighted that we are able to give the students an insight into a professional field that is not so prevalent in university studies. Developing alternative methods to animal testing is a promising career field for aspiring veterinarians."
The Phenion team and Professor Seeger agreed to continue and even strengthen the good cooperation in terms of student education, but also in terms of future research projects.
For more information and details about Phenion, visit www.phenion.com or www.phenion-us.com. More information about the Virtual Center for Alternative and Complementary Methods to Animal Experiments at www.tiho-hannover.de/forschung/forschungsprofil/forschungskooperationen-und-netzwerke/virtuelle-zentren/ersatz-und-ergaenzungsmethoden.
Contact
Prof. Bettina Seeger, PhD
University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover
Institute for Food Quality and Food Safety
Phone: +49 511 856-7602
bettina.seeger@tiho-hannover.de
