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FDA will phase out animal testing in drug development

(Reuters) — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday it plans to replace animal testing in the development of monoclonal antibody therapies and other drugs with “human-relevant methods,” including the use of AI-based models.

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The new approach would help improve drug safety, lower research and development costs and drug prices, the agency said.

“This initiative marks a paradigm shift in drug evaluation and holds promise to accelerate cures and meaningful treatments for Americans while reducing animal use,” said FDA Commissioner Martin Makary.

The FDA’s animal testing requirement will be “reduced, refined, or potentially replaced” with so-called New Approach Methodologies, or NAMs data, which include the use of AI-based models to predict a drug’s behavior as well as side effects and testing on human organ-like structures made in a laboratory.

“There is currently no full replacement for animal models in biomedical research and drug development,” the National Association for Biomedical Research (NABR) said in a statement.

Cabot Creamery butter is recalled over contamination risk

(NYT) — Cabot Creamery is voluntarily recalling more than 1,700 pounds of butter in seven states after testing found that the products had elevated levels of fecal bacteria, federal safety regulators said.

Cabot, based in Waitsfield, Vermont, is recalling 189 cases, or 1,701 pounds, of its 8-ounce, sea-salted Extra Creamy Premium Butter after it detected elevated levels of coliform bacteria. The contaminant is found in the feces of animals and humans, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The recall was initiated after “finished-product testing revealing an elevated level of coliform bacteria,” Agri-Mark, the parent company, said in a statement Wednesday.

The FDA said the recalled butter was distributed in Arkansas, Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont. The white-and-black packages are marked with a best-by date of Sept. 9, 2025, and the lot number 090925-055.

Andrew Tate is accused of rape in UK lawsuit

LONDON (NYT) — Andrew Tate, the online influencer known for his misogynistic views, has been accused of raping two women and threatening one of them with a gun, in a claim filed in Britain’s High Court.

The accusations are part of a lawsuit filed by the two women, and two others, last June against Tate. The New York Times obtained details of their claims from the court ahead of a hearing on the case in London on April 15.

The four British women are suing Tate for alleged abuse relating to a period when he was living in England, between 2013 and 2015. All four women accuse him of choking them, and two of them, one of whom was working for him at the time, accuse him of rape. Under British law, people who make complaints of sexual offenses are granted anonymity unless they choose to waive it.

One woman who worked for Tate’s webcam business in 2015, said in the claim that Tate, a former kickboxer, raped her and beat her with a belt. The claim alleges that he pointed a gun at her while saying: “I’m a boss” and “You’re going to do as I say, or there’ll be hell to pay.”