Dissemination of Information on Alternative Methods: Databases and Systems

Abstract In the 1980s, the demand for specific information on alternatives to animal experiments grew steadily. At the same time, the increasingly faster evolution of the Internet and technological advances have had a significant impact not only on the scientific research itself but also very importantly on the transformation of online databases and the changing attitude on how information is accessed by end-users. The steadily increasing number of information resources represents a powerful tool for research projects, but the satisfactory identification of the desired information has become a real challenge. The area of toxicology was one of the first that considered the use of alternative methods in its research projects and consequently pioneered the establishment of specialised resources that received a significant initial impulse with the establishment of the European Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods. The historical development of selected specialised databases on advanced and alternative non-animal approaches is described in this chapter.