Critical Analysis and

Reasoning in
Discipline-based
Studies
Ch. 6 Ethics in
Laboratory
Practical Work
Scientists in different countries are
working hard to investigate vaccines

P1: Vaccine has scientific foundation.

P2: Scientific foundation involves the study of biological
sciences.
C: This vaccine must be safe and applicable to the general
public.

 Will you trust this argument? Why and why not?

 In the process of vaccine production,
 Microbiologists have to do lots of experiments to
test the validity of the vaccine. Mice are the usual
target in the first step. Do you think this
action is ethical?
 The second stage (clinical trial) may apply to the
human beings. This step seems to be crucial and critical.
Do you support this step?
 Why animal research is essential?
 Animals are biologically very similar to humans. Mice share more than 98% DNA
with us.
 Animals are susceptible to many of the same health problems as humans – cancer,
diabetes, heart disease, etc.
 With a shorter life cycle than humans, animal models can be studied throughout
their whole life span and across several generations, a critical element in
understanding how a disease processes and how it interacts with a whole, living
biological system.

Zebrafish model
 “3Rs” in animal experimentation
 Replacement: Wherever possible live animals should be replaced
by non-sentient or less sentient alternatives such as cell cultures,
invertebrates or mathematical models.
 Refinement: Pain, distress or lasting harm should be minimized.
 Reduction: Use the minimum number of animals consistent with
achieving the objectives of the study.

Tumor in nude mice

http://www.3rs-reduction.co.uk/html/1__ethics.html
 Should we just rely on animal testing?
 Thalidomide has been prescribed to many pregnant women in
order to relieve pregnancy nausea (1950s).
 The drug was not thoroughly tested before launching to the
market.
 Rodent data indicated Thalidomide do not affect embryo
development. Mouse and rat embryos both possess superior
antioxidants than those in humans – additional protection.
 By 1962, more than 10,000 babies worldwide were born with
birth defects attributed to Thalidomide. It was banned in 1962.
Newborn affected by
 Catalyzing the beginnings of the rigorous drug approval and Thalidomide, resulting
monitoring systems in place at the United States Food and Drug in the shortening or
absence of limbs.
Administration (FDA) today.

https://www.roche.com/research_and_development/who_we_are_how_we_work/clinical_trials/what_is_a_clinical_trial.htm
 What are the ethical issues?
 Insufficient knowledge
 Scientific communication
 Doctor – patient relationship

Utilitarianism – Health >$$$ or $$$>Health?

Deontology – Duties of doctors/drug company?
Rights of patients?
 Ethics in clinical trial
Medical research is subject to ethical standards that promote and ensure
respect for all human subjects and protect their health and rights – World
medical association, DECLARATION OF HELSINKI (1964).

 Minimizing the risk of harm

 Obtaining informed consent
 Protecting anonymity and confidentiality
 Avoiding deceptive practices
 Providing the right to withdraw
Respect! Every lives matter!
 Acquiring knowledge

 Hands-on experiment plus

observation enable us to acquire knowledge.

 Trial and error

 Reasoning

 Do you agree in your field of studies? Science ?

Nursing? Biomedical Science or Chinese Medicine?
 Hands-on Experiment
 Is it safe to work with chemicals/ biological
materials?
 What about stay long inside a laboratory?
 Shall we pay attention to hazard pictograms? Why?
Why do we care
Lab Safety
Rules?
Hazard pictograms

Explosive Flammable Corrosive

Oxidising Acute toxicity Hazardous to the
environment
Serious health Health hazard Old “Harmful”
hazard symbol
Biohazard Carcinogenic Laser Radiation
 Laboratory Work

Risk comes from:

 Dealing with chemicals, micro-organisms / bacteria,

sharp instruments.

 Waste management
 How to access Chemical Hazards?
 All chemical reactions involve changes in energy, usually in
the form of heat, normally released during exothermic
reactions. A bit rare in the case of endothermic reactions.
 How this Hazard occurs?
 originate from the release of energy in a quantity or at a
rate that is too great to be dissipated by the environment of
the reacting system.
 you need to learn and understand MSDS
Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS)

A document contains information

 on the potential hazards (health, fire, reactivity and
environmental) and how to work safely with the chemical
product;
 on the use, storage, handling and emergency procedures
all related to the hazards of the material.
How to access Biological Hazards?
Samples can be biologically active, they can multiple
outside the laboratory!
 Bacteria
 Virus
 Cell lines
 Animal models
 DNA/RNA
Care must be taken to prevent any biological material from
escaping to the environment.
 Cell line data sheet
Cell line
 A defined population of cells that can
be maintained in culture for an
extended period of time, retaining
stability of certain phenotypes and
functions.
 Biologically active.
 Cell line data sheet contains all the
essential information of a cell line
including potential hazardous,
culture, storage methods and
biosafety level.
 Biosafety Guidance

 Guidance on Decontamination
http://www.safety.hku.hk/homepage/pdf/Decont2013.pdf
 Guidance on Working with Cell Cultures
http://www.safety.hku.hk/homepage/pdf/CCSafety2013.pdf
 Guidance on Working with naked DNA or RNA
http://www.safety.hku.hk/homepage/pdf/DNA.pdf
 Waste Disposal
 Safety Office, HKU
http://www.safety.hku.hk/homepage/index.html

 Handling and Disposal of Biological/ Chemical / Clinical

Waste
http://www.safety.hku.hk/homepage/pdf/CHWD.pdf
http://www.safety.hku.hk/homepage/pdf/CWD.pdf
http://www.safety.hku.hk/homepage/bio.html
 Discussion
 Regarding laboratory work and safety. and waste
disposals, we can find a lot of information related to
them. Why shall we learn, follow the rules and
regulation or the specification of the chemicals/
equipment? Is it a kind of obligation?
 What happen if we violate the rules and regulations?
 Will there be any ethical issues involved?
 Will there be chances that accident takes place?
If you do not learn, do you think you have a right
to take away somebodies’ life / harm someone as
a result of any laboratory accidents?

Release of Toxic Gas

Chemical spillage

Biological waste and infection control

Radiation leakage