Animal research has significantly contributed to the advancement of biological science, medicine and veterinary medicine. Laboratory animals are most commonly used for biomedical research and product safety testing, whereas smaller but still significant number of animals are also used in education.

Animal studies and experimentation on animals have significantly contributed to the knowledge about biology and physiology, resulting in a better understanding of health, disease and treatment, both in humans and in animals. Research and achievements in the field of physiology and medicine, which have resulted in the Nobel prizes, have been largely, due to experiments on animals.