An experimental study was conducted by Ping Li et al in 2018 to test the neurological effects of cerebral concussion on the production of inflammatory mediators. For this experiment, 300 adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to one traumatic brain injury (TBI) incident. In order to understand the physiology behind a concussion, Li et al stimulated closed - headed concussive rat models. For this purpose, a metallic pendulum-striker concussive device. This device was programmed to hit the forehead of the unanesthetized rat which was not restrained by any means. This replicated the human head receiving a cerebral blow (Li et al., 2018). The percussion surface of the striking hammer was 3.5 cm (Li et al., 2018). Following this injury, the rats were unconscious in which all the physiological indices, such as respiration, were absent for up to 10 minutes (Li et al., 2018). Gradually, these physiological processes were regained over time. The rats were then returned to their cages for recovery. Hereafter, the rats behaved and fed normally and showed no signs of generalized neurological abnormality (Li et al., 2018). After some time, at various time points, these rats were anaesthetized, and their brains were removed for the preparation of brain slides for further studies. I believe that the above-mentioned procedures outlined in this study indicate an ethical scientific practice. Most TBI models involve craniotomies to expose the brain prior to the injury which leaves the brain tissue susceptible to infection and premature death (Manley and Maas, 2013). Li et al were able to prevent this from happening by using a non-invasive close-headed concussive device. The harms minimized by this procedure reduced any form of unnecessary trauma. Furthermore, all procedures were approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of the Kunming Medical University. The subjects in this experiment were also treated in accordance with the National Institute of Health Guidelines for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (Li et al., 2018). It can be argued that purposefully causing neurological and physiological harm to the test subjects can be deemed unethical. However, using a Utilitarian perspective would refute such a claim. Using the consequentialist theory of Utilitarianism, we can justify that animal experimentation can be ethical so long as the outcome is objectively beneficial which would make it the normative action of choice (Lamont and Lowe, 2012). It has been estimated that over 42 million people worldwide suffer from concussions and other mild TBIs annually (Vos et al., 2012). Considering this, the findings of this experiment were objectively beneficial to the general population, human and animal alike. In the Utilitarian sense, this study was inarguably ethical as it provided us with a broader understanding of how TBIs affect the inflammation pathways in the brain. This allows further pursuit of treatment for TBIs. Lastly, it is also important to consider whether the content of this study was extrapolated using fraudulent interference or not. Due to the nature of this study, I believe that there would be minimal motivation for