Emerging bioethical conflicts: One Health and animal experimentation

One Health initiatives are modern paradigms for research and health care practices in various fields. Concrete definitions of the One Health framework, however, remain heterogeneous, leading to conceptual problems and uncertainties in the application of the framework. This article discusses several approaches to the One Health concept, and their associated consequences, with special focus on animal experimentation. The first issue addressed is how One Health should be defined, as well as what (and who) should be considered within a One Health approach. In order to shed further light on this, we explore the history of animals in biomedical science, highlighting historical milestones in the use of animal models, as well as the development and current state of ethical considerations in the field of animal experimentation. The second issue comes with the inclusion of animal experimentation per se as part of the One Health concept. Therefore, particular attention is paid to bioethical principles and the resulting problems that can arise when applying them to the One Health concept. Arguments such as the idea of inequality between humans and non-human animals, and the premise that all actions are done for the benefit of humans, are raised and then used to explore the question of whether the One Health concept is compatible with existing bioethical principles. Based on the bioethical principles of protecting the environment, the biodiversity and biosphere, this paper seeks an inclusive perspective of the One Health concept. Successful solutions will be based on this concept, which embraces all living beings. The authors conclude that a multispecies ethics approach could help create a more ethical ecosystem that is aligned with the wellbeing of all life on a shared planet.