Tests on computers will replace testing in animals?

Animal rights defenders claim that computer simulations have become so realistic that we don't need to test drugs on animals right now.

The first software that allows simulations like a living creature has just started to appear but the progress has increased rapidly.For example, heart computer simulations can now perform thousands of molecular interactions related to heart muscle spasms or waves.Simulations of lungs, digestive system, kidneys, skin, musculoskeletal system are also being prepared.

In all cases, these simulations allow to test a process that is not possible to perform in mice and other animals.

However, there is a limit to simulating informatics to real life.According to researcher Andrew McCulloch of the University of California, who created a virtual heart , there are many unknown physiological mechanisms. Each unknown mechanism will require some testing in animals . before being simulated on a computer.