The Humane Research Trust CIO

With Mother's Day coming up, why not treat her while helping animals?

We have some lovely giftware, with the added bonus that every purchase helps fund ethical, animal-free science.

Shop at https://humaneresearch.org.uk/gift-shop/

This #ColorectalCancerAwarenessMonth we're proud to share we're funding new research to develop a new, animal-free model of bowel cancer.

Read more: https://humaneresearch.org.uk/research/repurposing-surgical-waste-for-bowel-cancer-research/

Scientists hoped that inserting human genes into mice would lead to better outcomes.

🧬 But adding a few human genes doesn’t make mice human
🧠 Their biology, drug responses and lifespans are still very different
💊 Drugs that work in these mice still fail in human trials

Pigs can play video games. They recognise their names. They solve puzzles. 🐖

Yet thousands are used in UK research labs - subjected to invasive surgeries and organ harvesting for studies that fail to translate into clinical benefit.

Around 3.5 million people in the UK are affected by rare conditions - diseases that affect fewer than 1 in 2000 people.

This #RareDiseaseDay, we're calling for more human-relevant research into these conditions!

🗞️ NEW FINDINGS:
Patient-based research reveals early neurophysiological markers of impulse control in Parkinson’s - offering a path to tailored treatment.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41531-025-01207-5

Was running a half marathon or 10k one of your New Year's resolutions?

Register to fundraise for The Humane Research Trust, and get a discounted ticket for The Great Manchester Run:

https://humaneresearch.org.uk/product/aj-bell-great-manchester-run-half-marathon-charity-place/

Happy Love Your Pet Day! 🐾

Today, we’re celebrating the unconditional love and joy companion animals bring into our lives.

We're looking for an eye-catching photo to feature on the front of our charity's 2026 Christmas card.

👇 To vote, leave us a comment below, stating either A, B, C, D, E, or F by 04/03/2026.

22,204 animals were involved in UK lab law breaches in 2024.

Here are just some of the horrific tales from British laboratories that have been exposed in the recent government report.

Read more: https://humaneresearch.org.uk/asru-report-2024

The Humane Research Trust is hosting a design competition!

Design a t-shirt that champions our vision: a future without the use of animals in research.

🔗 Find more details inc. our file specifications, judging criteria, and T&Cs here: https://humaneresearch.org.uk/t-shirt-design-competition-2026/

Happy Valentine's Day from all of us here at the Trust! 💕⁠
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Whether you're spending quality time with a romantic partner, friends, family or a treasured companion animal, we hope your day is filled with love and joy!⁠

The House of Lords just approved new protest restrictions around animal testing sites.

For a government that only months ago announced a strategy to phase-out animal testing, this feels like a sudden step in the wrong direction.

Today we celebrate women driving innovation in science.

At THRT, we're proud to fund so many female researchers who are using animal-free, human-relevant methods to tackle major health challenges.

#InternationalDayOfWomenAndGirlsInScience

Cardiovascular diseases claim 1 in 3 lives worldwide.

This #HeartMonth, meet the scientists we’re funding who are driving breakthroughs in cardiovascular research - using 100% animal-free methods.

University of Oxford University of Surrey Royal Veterinary College UCL

It's your last chance to submit photos for our photography competition - where we're seeking a photo to put on our 2026 Christmas card!

The theme is 'animals and wildlife'. Submit your snaps: https://humaneresearch.org.uk/2026-christmas-card-competition/

We're delighted to announce we're funding new research at Sheffield Hallam University to build a model of bowel cancer built from repurposed surgical waste to test cutting-edge treatments.

Read more: https://humaneresearch.org.uk/research/repurposing-surgical-waste-for-bowel-cancer-research/

With Valentine's Day coming up, why not pick up a small gift from our shop? All proceeds go towards our mission of replacing the use of animals in medical research.

Visit humaneresearch.org.uk/gift-shop

We had a great time in London at The Royal Society for the Alliance for Human Relevant Science scientific meeting on advancing the use of human-relevant research methods across the life sciences!

Do mice share our genetic complexity? Do they live our lives, eat our diets, feel our stress?

Over 2 million animals used in UK cancer research in 10 years - yet 95% of drugs that work in animals fail in humans.

This #WorldCancerDay, it’s time for human-focused research.

This #WorldAspergillosisDay we're delighted to announce we're funding new research at The University of Manchester into this fungus, which causes severe lung infections.

Learn more: https://humaneresearch.org.uk/research/tackling-fungal-lung-infections/

We’re funding a dynamic organ-on-a-chip that mimics the retina using shape-morphing elastomer–hydrogel surfaces at Northumbria University - no animals, just real human biology.

Learn more: https://humaneresearch.org.uk/research/a-dynamic-approach-to-eye-health/

Streptococcus pneumoniae causes illnesses ranging from sinusitis to pneumonia. 🦠

We're proud to be funding a human airway model at De Montfort University to tackle these diseases.

Discover more: https://humaneresearch.org.uk/research/humane-model-for-bacterial-lung-infections/

We're glad to see the UK will phase out testing botox on animals by 2027.

Regulation is finally catching up to the science.

Check out this paper in NAM Journal on this topic ⤵️
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S3050620425000351?via%3Dihub

If one of your New Year's resolutions was to get your affairs in order, why not start with your Will?

We're pleased to offer you free and discounted Will-writing services - with no pressure to include us in your Will.

Get started: https://humaneresearch.org.uk/gifts-in-wills/

Researchers at University of Aberdeen created the first atlas of ECM gene activity during human cortical development.

📄 Read the full paper in Nature https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-64381-3

Fancy taking on a challenge to help end animal experiments?

We’ve partnered with Run For Charity to offer discounted places in some of the UK’s most exciting events, from 5Ks and 10Ks to marathons and muddy obstacle courses.

https://humaneresearch.org.uk/run-for-charity/

Thanks to everyone who purchased Christmas cards at one of the Charity Christmas Cards shops across Cheshire this past festive season, we've raised over £1,300! 🎄

This money will go towards funding innovative medical research that replaces animal experiments with humane alternatives.

Interested in non-animal research models?

Join us with Alliance for Human Relevant Science for a scientific meeting in London sponsored by The Royal Society.

📅 3 - 4 Feb
📍 One Birdcage Walk
🎟️ FREE

https://royalsociety.org/science-events-and-lectures/2026/02/life-sciences/

£624k invested into animal-free medical research - The Humane Research Trust The Humane Research Trust has awarded funding to new research projects at UK universities to study human diseases using non-animal methods.

We are excited to announce that we just committed £624k to medical research using 100% animal-free methods! 🎉

Our inspiring scientists will develop new, humane models for diseases such as bowel cancer and pneumonia.

https://humaneresearch.org.uk/624k-invested-into-animal-free-medical-research/