Michael Balls and FRAME
Michael Balls (b.1938), moved from the University of East Anglia to the University of Nottingham in 1975 to take up a role as Senior Lecturer in the Department of Human Morphology at the University of Nottingham, going on to be made Professor of Medical Cell Biology in 1990. Since 1995, he has been an Emeritus Professor. In 2002, he was appointed a CBE for his contributions toward humane animal research and has received many awards and honours during his career for his work in advancing alternative methods to animal testing, for services to cell biology, for contributions to the welfare of laboratory animals and for his role in advancing the field of in vitro toxicology.
The Three Rs
Michael Balls first came across the concept of alternatives to testing on animals in 1975 when Professor David Smith, author of 'Alternatives to Animal Experiments', suggested he approach animal welfare charities to support his research (which involved the study of cells in vitro, rather than using living animals, in vivo). He became a proponent of the Three Rs after coming across the publication 'The Principles of Humane Experimental Technique' by W.M.S. Russell and R.L. Burch (London, 1959), in which Russell and Burch classified humane techniques under three headings: Replacement, Reduction and Refinement. Replacement – the use of non-animal subjects wherever possible, with research into the development and validation of alternative research and testing models; Reduction – the minimising of the number of animals used, through better research design, the sharing of information through the creation of databases or through employing statistical methods; Refinement – improvement of experimental procedures, ethical sourcing and improved housing to minimise suffering.
History of FRAME
The Fund for the Replacement of Animals in Medical Experiments (FRAME) was established by Dorothy Hegarty with Charles Foister and Terence Hegarty, in London in 1969, to work towards relieving the suffering of animals used as subjects in biomedical research, and to promote and support research into acceptable new techniques as substitutes for the use of animals in scientific experiments. Professor Balls was invited to become a Trustee of FRAME in 1979, and on Hegarty's resignation, took over as Chairman of the Trustees in 1981.
FRAME in Nottingham
Professor Balls was also Scientific Director of FRAME from 1981-1993 and established the FRAME Research Programme. By being practically involved in research into the development of non-animal methods, FRAME hoped to gain greater influence. He was responsible for moving the headquarters of FRAME from London to Nottingham and the University of Nottingham was one of the research centres involved in FRAME’s first multi-centre research projects. Michael Balls and Richard Clothier (his PhD student and later colleague at FRAME) progressively took over the tissue culture suite in the University of Nottingham’s Department of Human Morphology; this was redesigned in 1992 to become the FRAME Alternatives Laboratory (FAL). The FAL provided research placements for Nottingham students and over time the focus of research shifted from using amphibian organ culture to human cell culture, benefiting from the close collaboration with the University’s Medical School. The FAL was extended and refurbished in 2007. Professor Balls calculated that between 1982 and 2009, FRAME donated £5 million to the University for research on alternative methods. The Vice-Chancellor, Sir Colin Campbell, was a Patron of the FRAME Appeal.
FRAME research
FRAME’s primary focus was toxicity testing because various existing tests, which were required by law, involved procedures which lead to animal suffering (such as the notorious LD50 lethal dose test which involves administering toxins to large numbers of animals to establish the dose required to kill half of the animals exposed). FRAME were the recipients in 1984 of the first ever British Government grant for research into alternatives. It established the INVITTOX data bank for alternative method protocols, introduced the first international validation scheme for alternative methods and participated in a number of successful international validation studies, successfully procuring support from the UK Government, the European Commission, and a large number of manufacturing and retail companies. The FRAME headquarters also hosted the secretariat of the European Research Group for Alternatives in Toxicity Testing (ERGATT) and FRAME was involved in joint European projects such as the Trans-European Mobility Scheme for University Studies (TEMPUS Program), the aim of which was to introduce the Three Rs concept to universities in Eastern Europe.
Influence
An All-Party Parliamentary FRAME Group had been established when Dorothy Hegarty was Chair of the FRAME Trustees, and in 1984, M. Balls became a member of the Home Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Animal Experiments. FRAME formed a ‘Triple Alliance’ with the British Veterinary Association (BVA) and the Committee for the Reform of Animal Experimentation (CRAE) to advise the Government during the preparation and passage through Parliament of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Bill 1985. M. Balls then became a founder member of Animal Procedures Committee (APC), created by the new Act. The Committee scrutinised applications for testing on animals for cosmetics or tobacco, for projects using non-human primates, and projects causing severe suffering. The Home Secretary would bring issues to the Committee for consideration and the Committee could also investigate subjects of its own choosing. In 1987 FRAME and the Committee for the Reform of Animal Experimentation (CRAE) submitted a position paper to the Home Secretary on ‘The use of non-human primates as laboratory animals in Great Britain', with all but one of its proposals being accepted as Government policy.
Industry support
FRAME had the support of several industrial companies including L'Oreal, Pfizer, Unilever, and the Huntingdon Research Centre, through funding or through joint research projects to validate alternative toxicity tests. They worked particularly closely with the cosmetics industry, at a time when the animal testing of cosmetic ingredients and products was a focus of public attention and campaigning. M. Balls was particularly critical of companies which labelled their products as cruelty free despite relying on ingredients which had been tested by other organisations who were on the receiving end of campaigns by animal rights activists. The FRAME logo featuring the white rabbit was developed to signal product testing without animals. FRAME was regularly consulted by both cosmetic industry organisations and the European Economic Community, in the revision of a European Commission cosmetics directive.
FRAME Publications
From 1982 to 2019, M. Balls was Editor of FRAME’s award-winning journal ATLA: Alternatives to Laboratory Animals, which was published six times a year, and which achieved an impressive Impact Factor. By c.1992 ATLA had three regional editors (UK and the rest of the world, Europe and North America), and was distributed in 48 countries, regularly publishing papers based on meetings of national and regional organisations and important editorials stimulating debate. From 1984 FRAME also produced a quarterly publication, FRAME News, for conveying constructive suggestions and critical comment to a wider audience. Other publications included pamphlets aimed at schools, newsletters (from 1984), and from 1989, Friends of FRAME, which had a focus on fundraising (individual donations and legacies had always helped to fund FRAME’s work).
FRAME
In June 2013 M. Balls was made Honorary Life President of FRAME and in 2017 was appointed as Honorary Scientific Adviser to the Chief Executive. Each year FRAME presents the Michael Balls Award, in recognition of Professor Balls’ outstanding dedication to ATLA during his 37 years as Editor-in-Chief, to the author(s) of the article in the previous year’s volume of ATLA which is likely to make the most significant contribution to the reduction, refinement and/or replacement of animal experimentation. FRAME continues to operate as a charity from its base in Nottingham and the FRAME Alternative Lab at the University's Medical School offers state-of-the-art equipment for growing human tissue, as well as providing support for PhD students, postdocs and undergraduate students to develop research projects that focus on alternatives.
