Close to 100 participants recently took part in the first international conference of EU-Simia, to discuss the crucial role of non-human primates (NHPs) in biomedical research, at the ISC Marc Jeannerod, in Lyon, France.

EU-Simia is the European network for researchers at laboratories, platforms, institutes and companies that carry out research with NHPs, and the event opened with remarks from Emmanuel Procyk, of Inserm, France, chair of its steering group.

Emmanuel highlighted how the network (with EARA acting as its secretariat) serves as a vital bridge between research, public engagement, and ethical advancements, aiming to create a sustainable future for research using NHPs in Europe.

At a session looking at the regulatory landscape, Valeska Stephan, of the German Research Foundation, explained the difficulties researcher Andreas Kreiter has had in getting approval for his studies in the state of Bremen, to illustrate how research using NHPs is under heavy political scrutiny across different states in Germany, often led by non-scientific voices.

And in a thought-provoking presentation, Stuart Baker, at Newcastle University, UK, spoke of the continuing decline in macaque research in the UK, including the closure of macaque research groups in all but two universities.

He spoke of the challenge this presents for sustaining critical biomedical infrastructure, particularly as the future of the Centre for Macaques (CFM), at Porton Down, Wiltshire was now in doubt.

Meanwhile, in examples of some of the valuable research being conducted in Europe, Luca Bonini, of EARA member the University of Parma, Italy, discussed how NHPs serve as essential models for understanding the neural basis of behaviour and its disruption in disease states. Then Serge Picaud from the Institut de la Vision, France, explained the therapies aimed at preventing vision loss and restoring sight in NHPs, and Jean Laurens, of EARA member the Ernst Strüngmann Institute, Germany, highlighted the use of marmoset monkeys to study spatial navigation and inner ear balance.

EARA executive director, Kirk Leech, reflected on the increasing tendency of those opposed to animal use to characterise those who make a scientific and moral case for research as being old fashioned and wedded to the past.

He said: “By establishing this false narrative, it presents those opposed to animal use as being modern, forward thinking and open to innovation, whilst those who continue to support animal use as being relics of a bygone era.”

Feedback from the conference overwhelmingly called for it to become a regular event, as it is one of the only conferences worldwide that focuses solely on the use of monkeys in research.