British national treasure, Dame Joanna Lumley kicks off series 3 of the Animal Free Labcast in style! In this exclusive interview, the Animal Free Research UK patron tells Carla how strongly she feels that all living creatures have a right to life without pain - and a life of freedom. Joanna talks about where her love of animals comes from, the leaps and bounds made in animal free research, and what we can all do to make the world a kinder place.Tune in for an inspiring conversation with the UK’s most loved animal advocate.Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

The Animal Free Labcast is back!In each episode I’ll be chatting with someone who is helping to make our vision -  of a world where human diseases are cured faster without animal suffering – an ever-closer reality. We are beyond excited to be kicking off series 3 of our podcast with our fabulous patron Dame Joanna Lumley!The new series launches on the 20 September 2023, so subscribe to the Animal Free Labcast on your podcast provider so you don't miss out on any episodes!Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

It is a little known fact that scientists can cure cancer in mice, but not yet in humans.In this episode, Carla speaks with skin expert Professor Mike Philpott, who heads up the Animal Replacement Centre of Excellence at Queen Mary University of London – funded by Animal Free Research UK. At the ARC, Mike and his team are using human relevant methods to study skin, head and neck cancer, all without using mice - or any other animals. Listen to find out what led Mike to develop a now widely used human skin model, and the surprising place Mike and his team source human skin.PS. You may have heard of in-vitro, but what about ex-vivo? Mike simplifies the science for us.Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

An Organ on a Plate - not as macabre as it sounds - is a pioneering piece of technology that is replacing the use of animals in laboratories and advancing medical research. Dr Malcolm Wilkinson, founder of company Kirkstall who makes and provides this technology, explains to Carla what it is, how it works, and its huge potential for human-relevant science.Listen to find out how a presentation at a conference aligned with Malcolm’s passion for animals and sparked the birth of his company, and which recent animal-free success Malcolm draws hope from for a world where animals are no longer used in medical research. Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

In this episode, Carla is joined by Dr Martin Ashby – a consultant in palliative care for the NHS and Trustee of Animal Free Research UK. Martin talks to Carla about his frustration at the lack of progress being made for treatments for his patients, something he attributes to the continued focus on substandard animal-based research. Listen to find out what 80s TV programme sparked Martin’s lifelong animal advocacy, leading him to take a stand against the animal-using status quo at his university, and eventually to challenging animal research at medical conferences. Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

Dr Jan Turner shares her vivid memories of animal use in her A Level Biology class and beyond, a grim reality that made her uncomfortable throughout her studies and early career. Her aversion to using animals, coupled with the emergence of new human-relevant technologies, has led Jan to being a Product Manager at Axol Bioscience, a supplier of human cells to biotech and pharmacology industries.  Jan tells Carla about the fascinating work Axol Bioscience does, how they are already helping to reduce the use of animals in medical research, and how the future of personalised medicine is closer than you might think.Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

Since she started fundraising for Animal Free Research UK, Steph Jones-Giles and the Bude Support Group that she Chairs have raised an incredible £48,000 for the charity.In this episode, Steph shares her passion for fundraising with Carla and explains why it is one of the best bits of her life. Learn about Steph’s motivations for supporting us, her inspirational fundraising successes, and how she engages with her community in Bude, Cornwall, on animal free science.Listen wherever you get your podcastsThanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

In this episode, Carla is joined by Dr Paul Holloway, stroke researcher at the University of Oxford whose fascinating work is funded by Animal Free Research UK.From paint strokes to studying strokes, learn about how Paul’s artistic side helps him find creative new solutions for stroke research that he hopes will contribute to reducing suffering for both patients and animals. They discuss the advantages of human relevant science, the route to its adoption, and what Paul thinks is the biggest barrier to getting there.Psst... Ever wondered what “cell culture”, “in vivo” and “in vitro” mean? Paul explains all. Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

In 2020, Baroness Sue Hayman became the first Member of the House of Lords to be introduced in faux fur robes, an unsurprising choice given her strong political record on supporting animal welfare.In this episode, Sue tells Carla about how a university tour opened her eyes to animal suffering, led her into animal welfare campaigning, and eventually to Westminster, where she has been proud to give a voice to the voiceless. From working on the banning of glue-traps and ivory importation, to now acting as Vice Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Human Relevant Science, Sue shares her political wins for animals, along with her thoughts on how people in power could accelerate the adoption of animal free science.  Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

To mark Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Carla is joined by Professor Valerie Spiers, breast cancer researcher at the University of Aberdeen supported by Animal Free Research UK. In their conversation, you’ll hear how Val is using fascinating organ-on-a-plate technology to study the spread of cancer, and how her research could benefit patients in the not-too-distant future.Tune in to find out how Val’s childhood kitchen cupboard experiments sparked her interest in a career in science, and how, years later, she is now engaging the next generation of animal free researchers.Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

In this episode, Carla is joined by actor and Animal Free Research UK Patron Carol Royle. They discuss the moment Carol was awakened to the need to speak up for animals, and her experience of being an animal advocate in the 1970s through to present day.Stay tuned until the end to hear a powerful poem by Carol, along with a definition of the spiritual doctrine “Ahimsa” which guides her life.Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

Converting extracted human wisdom teeth into heart cells – no, not science fiction but reality in Professor Chris Denning’s lab at the University of Nottingham. In this episode, Carla talks to Chris about the important work he and his team do at the Biodiscovery Institute on heart disease, and the path that led him there.  Chris shines a light on how “Modern Day Alchemy”, as he calls it, is paving the way for personalised medicine, and how new animal free technologies will impact heart patients in real terms.Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

Ever wondered what how we can beat the aging process and lead a long, healthy life? In this episode Carla catches up with Professor Lorna Harries who researches such things along with her team at our Animal Replacement Centre of Excellence at the University of Exeter – also known as ARC 2.0.  Lorna takes us through her amazing and very successful animal free research work on diabetes and Covid 19 – exciting research science at it best.  And while she may not yet found the elusive fountain of youth, in this episode you can find out about the quest for longer, healthier life  -  and why animal free, human relevant research is not a second-class option, but the best option.  Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

World-class pioneer of biomedical research and innovation, Dr Don Ingber, is the founding director of Harvard University’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering. In 2010, Dr Ingber developed a lung-on-a-chip - the first of its kind - and has continued to lead the field by developing numerous other organ chip models, demonstrating their ability to faithfully mimic human physiology and disease states as well as therapeutic responses.   Thanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

Professor of Neuroscience at Durham University, Amanda Ellison discusses her career – and how she helped develop a new human research technique - Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) which has revolutionised neuroscience and is making a difference for monkeys and patients.  She offers her thoughts on where cutting edge new approaches will take the medical research community - and how she is inspiring the next generation of animal replacement scientists.  https://www.animalfreeresearchuk.orgThanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

In this episode Dr Jarrod Bailey, Animal Free Research UK’s Science Director, highlights the issues surrounding the use of animals in medical research and drug testing - and makes a plea for the status quo to be broken. He  dismantles the arguments often made by those who advocate animal use, and details how so-called new approach methodologies – NAMs – are revolutionising the transition to animal free innovation https://www.animalfreeresearchuk.orgThanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

Dr Jarrod Bailey, Animal Free Research UK’s Science Director, recounts in the first of two shows how at the start of his career, he became convinced animal free research is the only way to find better treatments  for human diseases, from Alzheimer’s to cancer, heart disease and diabetes.In this episode, Jarrod talks about his passion for animals and an epiphany he had as a child when seeing his own reflection in the eyes of a cow. https://www.animalfreeresearchuk.orgThanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!

The Animal Free Labcast is hosted by the CEO of Animal Free Research UK, Carla Owen, and is a frank, lively exchange of ideas and experiences by leading scientists, policy makers and animal protection ambassadors - all of whom seek a kinder science.Carla and her guests cut through the noise and complexities to break down the urgent need to accelerate human relevant science and end the medical emergency -  which is in large part caused by the continued reliance on animals as models for human disease research.Listen in to new episodes every two weeks, starting on June 29, 2022.https://www.animalfreeresearchuk.orgThanks for listening! Make sure you leave a review on Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram to keep up to date on all things animal free research!