Rhesus monkeys used in an inhumane and wasteful experiment simulating human exposure to high voltage power lines in Iran ( the experiment has been done with humans making this cruelty senseless

  In Iran, rhesus macaques used to study impact of high voltage power transmission

Rhesus macaque in laboratory cage
Cruelty Free International/SOKO Tierschutz

Two adult male rhesus macaques were used in an inhumane and wasteful experiment simulating human exposure to high voltage power transmission lines in Iran. The work was approved by the Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences institutional review board.

The macaques were kept in a controlled environment for 12 months to adapt. One of the individuals was exposed to a high voltage electric field for 4 hours a day for a month. The electric field was simulated using two metal sheets, each two x two metres. A crane was used to place the sheets at the bottom and on top of a cage, which was only one x one x one metres. The sheets were exposed to a voltage of six kV to create the electric field. The other macaque was kept outside this field as a "control".

Tests designed to determine memory were done before, during and after the exposure to the electric field. The tests comprised the ability of each macaque to find food comprising a peanut in different settings, several times a day. The macaques were deprived of food for 17 hours before tests. The macaques were also subjected to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to determine activity in the brain. The fate of the macaques was not stated.

These two macaques had to live in tiny cages, under laboratory conditions, deprived of any meaningful social contact, in a scientifically poor study that had no value for human health. The researchers pointed out that there have already been numerous studies in humans to determine the effects of electromagnetic radiation. Given that literally tens of thousands of humans live in close proximity to high voltage transmission lines worldwide, humane and relevant studies could be carried out with them. This experiment is just another example of the unwillingness of the research industry to use and improve methodologies that do not depend on subjecting non-human primates to exceptionally inhumane experiments and conditions.   Action for Primates)

Reference:

Aliyari, Hamed; Hosseinian, Mohsen; Menhaj, Mohammad Bagher; Sahraei, Hedayat; Shabani, Mohsen and Kazemi, Masoomeh 2025-01-01 Effect of High-voltage Electrical Field Exposure on Neurobiological Factors and Visual Working Memory of Macaques Basic and Clinical Neuroscience 16(Spec Issue):251-264