PETA Sends Formal Complaint to NIH

Mary Beth Sweetland, a spokeswoman for PETA, said the complaint includes a comprehensive list of practices conducted by UNC laboratory researchers that PETA believes violate NIH guidelines for ethical lab animal treatment.

She said the formal complaint will include 58 tapes containing 60 days worth of video taped in UNC animal laboratories, as well as a PETA investigator's daily log notes and a set of photos.

The formal complaint comes almost two weeks after Kate Turlington, a PETA undercover investigator hired in UNC labs, released a videotape showing alleged mistreatment of lab animals by UNC researchers. "We want the NIH to realize that we are serious people who have identified serious problems," Sweetland said.

Sweetland said another letter, which was sent Friday to Stephen Potkay, director of compliance oversight with the Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare at NIH, outlined separate violations that are part of the complaint. In the letter, Sweetland addresses some specific violations first issued by Turlington to UNC's Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee on Feb. 12.

Sweetland describes in the letter examples of alleged abuse and neglect that Turlington reported, including "mice being used in an ethanol study who were suffering from illness and diarrhea." Sweetland states in the letter that the researcher failed to give the animals relief after instructed and that IACUC did not follow up on the complaint.

Sweetland further states that "animals continued to have their necks cervically dislocated, even though this killing method was not approved in the protocol, and our investigator found yet more live animals in the dead cooler."

After detailing the charges, Sweetland criticizes UNC's response and subsequent actions.

She said in an interview Monday that she is unimpressed with UNC's formation of several subcommittees of IACUC that were set up to formally investigate the alleged violations.

"Committees are so easy to slap together," Sweetland said. "We want to make sure that the NIH understands that the people in the UNC labs need more than just a wake-up call; they need remedial training."

NIH officials had no comment on any letters sent by PETA.

In the letter to Potkay, Sweetland also requests a meeting between PETA representatives, including Turlington, and the NIH. But Sweetland said the NIH refused her request. Sweetland said she then suggested to NIH a second meeting with UNC, but she said she has not heard anything addressing that request. UNC officials first met with the NIH last week.

An NIH representative said Monday, "Things are moving forward, and we are acting on the basis of information already released by PETA," although he declined to comment specifically on PETA's request for meetings.

Tony Waldrop, vice chancellor for research and graduate studies, said he has not heard about any possible meetings with PETA and the NIH. He said the University is waiting on further word from the NIH before responding.

"The NIH will look at any new allegations received in the complaint, assemble things and will inform us of any action needed to be taken," Waldrop said. "We will take any complaint seriously."

The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu.