A more humane death for laboratory rats

Euthanasia is one of the most common laboratory procedures, because virtually every animal is killed at the end of a study. A growing body  of research has shown that the inhalant anaesthetic isoflurane is a more humane alternative to the commonly used carbon dioxide (CO2) for rendering rodents unconscious during euthanasia. Although isoflurane is more humane than CO2, it still causes some aversion to the animals. New research by AWP visiting researcher from France, Julie Boulanger Bertolus, undergraduate student Geoff Nemeth, graduate student Joanna Makowska, and professor Dan Weary investigated whether a newer inhalant anaesthetic, sevoflurane, is less aversive than isoflurane to laboratory rats.