3R in preclinical research

4. Jointly tackling cultural change for the 3Rs using big data

The examples mentioned typify the commitment of the pharmaceutical industry to break new ground, share data and make it available to researchers, and make increased use of the opportunities of big data and artificial intelligence, even in preclinical research. This could be the start of a new chapter enabling further significant progress to be achieved with the 3Rs. Discoveries in basic medical research also benefit patients. For example, digital methods were and still are being used to research the structures and functionality of the coronavirus.

It is important that the opportunities presented by digitalisation, which is widely used in society, are also increasingly used in drug research. But this will only happen if preclinical research data is made widely available.

Interpharma aims to promote the dialogue on data networking in the preclinical field and help to advance this important subject in Switzerland and in an international context. Cultural change, collaboration between all researchers and appropriate political measures (recognition of new alternative methods and artificial intelligence) as well as the protection of intellectual property are vitally important if the potential of big data and artificial intelligence is to be exploited in order to replace animal experiments in developing drugs and treatments.