- Comment: Transcluding reply to questions on my talk page: " I do not understand how it could be understood as anything but a pharmaceutical" is a bad arguement just by virtue that I didn't get that, and thus it's reasonable other readers would have the same problem :). I think there's also an issue with the strict definition of pharmaceutical and the colloquial definition. I interpret pharmaceutical as any drug that requires a prescription, that of course could just be a regional thing though. You may want lay out in the lead what the FDA definition of a pharmaceutical is or whatever you're going by for the article.There is also a fine line of advocacy you are skirting here. Example: "The religious, cultural, and ethical concerns of patients are increasing in importance as the use of animal products in pharmaceuticals, particularly the use of biologics, rise." is not supported by the inline cite you list at the end of it. If there is concerns across the board in these areas, then you need to find reliable sources to support that statement.Those are the two issues I still see. I think it's an important subject and deserving of an article, I'm just trying to help you get it squared away, as I'm worried if it went to mainspace someone would either nominate it for deletion or gut it in some type of way. A couple other suggestions (although not required):1) I would tie in the inactive ingredients to popular pharmaceuticals that use those ingredients.2) I would focus a little more on animal product use in actual active ingredients (if there is any), majority of the article focuses on inactive ingredients, but maybe that's what they're mostly used for?Just tweak those couple things and resubmit or ping me. Sulfurboy (talk) 00:37, 16 May 2020 (UTC)
- Comment: Much of the article is contradicts the title. The article is called "animal products in pharmaceuticals", yet many things that are listed here aren't pharmaceuticals. One talks about ingredients for soap. The other is about fortified milk, etc. Sulfurboy (talk) 03:46, 24 April 2020 (UTC)
Animal product additives in pharmaceuticals play a role as both active and inactive ingredients. Animal products in pharmaceuticals are inactive ingredients when used as binders, carriers, stabilizers, fillers, and colorants.[1] Biologics and some vitamins are use cases for animal products as active ingredients in pharmaceuticals. A pharmaceutical is a medium used to diagnose, treat, and prevent disease and to correct bodily functions.[2]
The religious, cultural, and ethical concerns of patients and the disclosure of animal constituents in pharmaceuticals are a growing area of concern.[3] [4] [5]
Active Ingredients
Insulin
Insulin from cattles and pigs have been used since 1920's, and was the predominant form of insulin used for decades. The first synthetic human insulin was created using bacteria in 1978.[6] In the United States, the manufacture of beef insulin was discontinued in 1998, and the manufacture of pork insulin was discontinued in 2006.[7]
Biologics
Xenotransplantation is the transplantation of non-human animal tissues, cells, and organs into a human recipient.[8] According to the Food and Drug Administration, xenotransplantation presents public health risks, including transmitting viruses, bacteria, or other organisms to humans that may not be pathogenic or detectable in the source animal.[9]
Premarin
The drug Premarin is a conjugated estrogen which is commonly used as a hormone replacement therapy. The drug is derived from the urine of pregnant horses.[10]
Inactive Ingredients
Gelatin
One of the most common animal products in medicine is Gelatin.[1] Gelatin is derived from animal skin, bone, and tissue most often from pigs or beef.[11] There is no practical way of determining if the gelatin used in pharmaceuticals is derived from beef or pork. It is used primarily for gel capsules and as stabilizers for vaccines.[12] A non-animal derived alternative to gelatin is Pectin as a gelling agent or Cellulose for creating vegetable capsules.[13]
Stearic Acid
Another common animal-derived additive is Stearic acid. Stearic acid can be derived from vegetables or animals such as cows, sheep, dogs, or cats.[12] There is no practical method for determining the source of stearic acid in pharmaceuticals. Stearic acid is far more abundant in animal rather than vegetable sources. Lard and tallow, for example, contain up to 30% stearic acid.[14]
Sodium Tallowate
Sodium tallowate is a common soap ingredient derived from tallow—the fat of animals such as cattle and sheep.[15] Soaps which include the use of sodium tallowate include Dove, Dial, and Ivory. Soap is a pharmaceutical, according to the United States Food and Drug Administration.[16] A popular alternative to this ingredient is sodium palmate, which is derived from palm oil.[17]
Vaccines
According to the American Food and Drug Administration "Cow components are often used simply because cows are very large animals, commonly used for food, and thus much material is available." Although cows are most commonly used, animal products in vaccines can be from a variety of animals. Within the vaccine, the inactive components from animal sources can include amino acids, glycerol, detergents, gelatin, enzymes and blood.[18]
References
- ^ a b "Is Your Medicine Vegan? Probably Not". NPR.org. Retrieved 2020-03-04.
- ^ "Pharmaceutical | therapeutic substance". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
- ^ Eriksson, Axelina; Burcharth, Jakob; Rosenberg, Jacob (2013-12-01). "Animal derived products may conflict with religious patients' beliefs". BMC Medical Ethics. 14 (1): 48. doi:10.1186/1472-6939-14-48. ISSN 1472-6939. PMC 4220589. PMID 24289542.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link) - ^ Rodger, Daniel; Blackshaw, Bruce P. (2019-02-18). "Using animal-derived constituents in anaesthesia and surgery: the case for disclosing to patients". BMC Medical Ethics. 20 (1): 14. doi:10.1186/s12910-019-0351-4. ISSN 1472-6939. PMC 6379939. PMID 30777063.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link) - ^ Tatham, Kate C.; Patel, Kinesh P. (2014-02-04). "Suitability of common drugs for patients who avoid animal products". BMJ. 348. doi:10.1136/bmj.g401. ISSN 1756-1833. PMID 24496281.
- ^ "The History of a Wonderful Thing We Call Insulin | ADA". www.diabetes.org. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
- ^ Research, Center for Drug Evaluation and (2019-07-10). "Questions and Answers on Importing Beef or Pork Insulin for Personal Use". FDA.
- ^ "U.S. Public Health Service Guideline on Infectious Disease Issues in Xenotransplantation". Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report: Recommendations and Reports. 50 (RR-15): i–46. 2001. ISSN 1057-5987. JSTOR 42000864.
- ^ "Source Animal, Product, Preclinical, and Clinical Issues Concerning the Use of Xenotransplantation Products in Humans: Guidance for Industry". fda.gov. US Food and Drug Administration. December 2016. p. 2. Retrieved 11 April 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ News, Keith Morrison NBC (2004-01-19). "The HRT horses". msnbc.com. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
{{cite web}}
:|last=
has generic name (help) - ^ "Gelatin | animal protein". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-03-04.
- ^ a b "Medicines/Pharmaceuticals of Animal Origin" (PDF). Queensland Health. January 4, 2019. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Prakash, Ajay; Soni, Hariom; Mishra, Abhishek; Sarma, Phulen (2017). "Are your capsules vegetarian or nonvegetarian: An ethical and scientific justification". Indian Journal of Pharmacology. 49 (5): 401–404. doi:10.4103/ijp.IJP_409_17 (inactive 2020-04-25). ISSN 0253-7613. PMC 5830853. PMID 29515283.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of April 2020 (link) CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link) - ^ "Stearic acid | chemical compound". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-03-09.
- ^ "Tallow | biochemistry". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- ^ Nutrition, Center for Food Safety and Applied (2020-02-04). "Is It a Cosmetic, a Drug, or Both? (Or Is It Soap?)". FDA.
- ^ "About Sodium Palmate - Tom's of Maine". www.tomsofmaine.com. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
- ^ Research, Center for Biologics Evaluation and (2019-03-20). "Bovine Derived Materials Used in Vaccine Manufacturing Questions and Answers". FDA.