UMass Amherst marmoset monkey lab that drew PETA’s ire closes
AMHERST — A researcher whose controversial use of marmoset monkeys to unlock the secrets of Alzheimer's, aging and women's health drew the fury of PETA has closed her lab at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
In a message posted to her own website, Agnès Lacreuse says caring for primates requires top-quality infrastructure and resources. S he is grateful to the National Institutes of Health and others for more than $6 million in federal funding.
"However, current efforts to destroy science and slash research funding undermine my ability to continue support for nonhuman primate research at UMass," she said.
A man protesting experiments conducted on marmosets at UMass ran onto Fenway Park Friday as University of Massachusetts–Amherst Chancellor Javier Reyes was throwing out the first pitch.PETA
The lab is finishing up a research project concerning the topic of breast cancer.
"Above all, my heart goes out to each one of the beloved monkeys who helped advance scientific knowledge and improve the lives of humans and other animals," she said.
The University of Massachusetts released a written statement:
"The lab, whose work has been dedicated to studies that advance the knowledge of the aging process with a focus on Alzheimer's disease and women's health (including breast cancer treatments), recently completed NIH grant-funded research using non-human primates. The funded experiments ended as planned, within the scheduled end of the grant."
Casey Affleck, the Massachusetts-born actor, joined PETA members and supporters on Monday, Sept. 13, 2021 at the University of Massachusetts Amherst to protest animal research conducted at the school. (Will Katcher/MassLive).
PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, declared victory in a news release.
"We were determined to close this laboratory and end the torture of these tiny monkeys, and we did," says PETA Senior Vice President Kathy Guillermo. "Lacreuse's reign of terror is over."
PETA described how Lacreuse's laboratory staff drilled holes in marmosets' skulls to implant electrodes, cut into their necks and threaded wires through their bodies.
Stories by Jim Kinney
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