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Alpha 2-adrenergic mechanisms in prefrontal cortex associated with cognitive decline in aged nonhuman primates.

This study provides evidence that the alpha 2-adrenergic receptor agonist clonidine ameliorates the cognitive deficits exhibited by aged nonhuman primates through drug actions at alpha 2 receptors. Furthermore, pharmacological profiles in animals with lesions restricted to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex indicate that this area may be the site of action for some of clonidine's beneficial effects. These results demonstrate that alpha-adrenergic systems contribute to cognitive function and suggest a new strategy for treating memory disorders in aged humans.

Aging↗

The capacity for computed tomography diagnosis of cerebral infarction. An experimental study in the nonhuman primate.

The characteristic serial CT scan appearance of cerebral infarction created by embolization of the middle cerebral artery in the nonhuman primate (10 baboons) is defined. The earliest CT changes are noted by 12 to 24 hours and include generalized ventricular enlargement and a focal region of decreased absorption in the opercula-basal ganglia region. The area of diminished brain absorption is better circumscribed and of lower attenuation coefficient with increasing chronicity. Distinct hydrocephalus, unilateral exophthalmos and ventricular displacement occurred with increased intracranial pressure. Little additional diagnostic information was obtained via intravenous enhancement and care should be taken as mild enhancement may obscure an area of abnormality.

Animals↗

Sirolimus (rapamycin) monotherapy prevents graft vascular disease in nonhuman primate recipients of orthotopic aortic allografts.

BACKGROUND: Delayed treatment with sirolimus (SRL) halts progression of graft vascular disease (GVD) in nonhuman primate (NHP) aortic allograft recipients. In this study, we investigated whether SRL monotherapy prevents the development of GVD. METHODS AND RESULTS: Pairs of 3-cm infrarenal aortic segments were exchanged between mixed lymphocyte reaction-mismatched, blood group-compatible NHPs (n=12). Six NHPs were untreated controls, and 6 were treated orally with SRL starting on the day of transplantation. Follow-up was 105 days. SRL doses were adjusted individually by assessing SRL blood concentrations, immune function, and clinical status. The severity of GVD was determined every 3 weeks by intravascular ultrasound, which quantified intimal area (IA) and intimal volume (IV) for the middle 1-cm graft segments. The mean+/-SEM SRL plasma levels were 14.5+/-9 ng/mL. In grafts from treated NHPs, IA and IV values on days 63, 84, and 105 were significantly lower than for controls (P<0.05 to P<0.001). On day 105, in the grafts from SRL-treated NHPs compared with grafts from controls, values (mean+/-SEM) were IA, 2.9+/-0.9 versus 5.5+/-0.7 mm2, P<0.001 and IV, 29.6+/-4.6 versus 55.2+/-2.8 mm3, P<0.001; IA and IV values for grafts from SRL-treated NHPs did not increase significantly between days 21 and 105. CONCLUSIONS: We show that SRL monotherapy prevented GVD in NHP aortic allograft recipients, suggesting the value of SRL for controlling GVD in clinical transplantation.

Animals↗

Physicochemical and histological changes in the arterial wall of nonhuman primates during progression and regression of atherosclerosis.

To identify the temporal changes occurring during progression and regression of atherosclerosis in nonhuman primates, we have studied the physicochemical and histological characteristics of arterial wall lesions during a 30-mo progression period of diet-induced hypercholesterolemia and during a 12-mo period of regression. Three groups of cynomolgous monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) were studied. Control groups were fed a basal chow diet for 18, 24, and 30 mo and were compared with progression groups that were fed a high-cholesterol-containing diet for up to 30 mo. Regression groups were fed a high-cholesterol diet for 18 mo to induce atherosclerosis and then fed monkey chow for up to 12 mo. The progression group monkeys were killed at 6, 12, 18, 24, and 30 mo, and the regression animals were killed at 24 and 30 mo (i.e., after 6 and 12 mo of being fed a noncholesterol-containing chow diet). Histology and morphometry, physical microscopy for cholesterol monohydrate crystals, foam cell and droplet melting points and chemical composition studies were completed on a large number of individual arterial lesions. Control animals had very little cholesterol ester, rare foam cells, and no extracellular cholesterol ester droplets or cholesterol crystals. During progression, the arteries first increased cholesterol ester content to produce high melting (approximately 45 degrees C) foam cell-rich lesions essentially devoid of cholesterol crystals. With time, the number of cholesterol crystals increased so that by 30 mo large numbers were present. Foam cells decreased with time but their melting temperature remained high while that of extracellular droplets fell to approximately 38 degrees C. Between 18 and 30 mo necrosis appeared and worsened. After 6-mo regression, unexpected changes occurred in the lesions. Compared with 24-mo progression, the chemical composition showed a relative increase in free cholesterol, a decrease in cholesterol ester and microscopy revealed large numbers of cholesterol crystals. Concomitantly, foam cells decreased and the melting temperature of both intra- and extracellular cholesterol ester markedly decreased. After 12-mo regression cholesterol decreased, cholesterol crystals and necrosis diminished and collagen appeared increased. Thus, during progression there is initially an increase in the number of foam cells containing very high-melting intracellular cholesterol ester droplets. By 30 mo, cholesterol crystals and necrosis dominate and high-melting foam cells appear only at lesion margins, suggesting that the initial process continues at the lesion edge. The lower melting point of extracellular esters indicates a lipid composition different from intracellular droplets. Thus, the changes observed in these animals generally reflect those predicted for progression of human atherosclerosis. During the initial 6 mo of regression, necrosis remains, the number of foam cell decreases, and cholesterol ester content decreases; however the relative proportion of free cholesterol content increases, and large numbers of cholesterol content are formed. Thus, large and rapid decreases in serum cholesterol concentration to produce regression in fact may result in the precipitation of cholesterol monohydrate and an apparent worsening of the lesions. More prolonged regression (12-mo) tends to return the lipid composition of the artery wall towards normal, partially reduces cholesterol crystals, and results in an improved but scarred intima.

Animals↗

Training nonhuman primates to cooperate with scientific procedures in applied biomedical research.

This report provides a brief overview of aspects of training nonhuman primates who have been, and continue to be, used in this laboratory. The research context involves applied behavioral studies in which animals are trained to perform complex operant behavioral sequences, often in their homecage environment. In such studies, animals have freedom to choose whether to engage in appetitively reinforced behavioral tests that employ neither food deprivation nor fluid management. This background of operant conditioning has provided an insight to, and a context for, animal training both as an adjunct to general laboratory management and as a way to expedite scientific procedures. Thus, training has potential implications for both well-being and scientific quality, although it must be considered an adjunct to the provision of socialization with conspecifics in high quality diverse housing systems and not as an alternative to such provision. The importance of discussion and consideration of alternative procedures cannot be overemphasized.

Animal Husbandry↗

The processing of visual shape in the cerebral cortex of human and nonhuman primates: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study.

We compared neural substrates of two-dimensional shape processing in human and nonhuman primates using functional magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in awake subjects. The comparison of MR activity evoked by viewing intact and scrambled images of objects revealed shape-sensitive regions in occipital, temporal, and parietal cortex of both humans and macaques. Intraparietal cortex in monkeys was relatively more two-dimensional shape sensitive than that of humans. In both species, there was an interaction between scrambling and type of stimuli (grayscale images and drawings), but the effect of stimulus type was much stronger in monkeys than in humans. Shape- and motion-sensitive regions overlapped to some degree. However, this overlap was much more marked in humans than in monkeys. The shape-sensitive regions can be used to constrain the warping of monkey to human cortex and suggest a large expansion of lateral parietal and superior temporal cortex in humans compared with monkeys.

Adult↗

Measurement of glycated hemoglobin percentages for use in the diagnosis and monitoring of diabetes mellitus in nonhuman primates.

OBJECTIVE: To identify a technique for measurement of glycated hemoglobin percentage in blood samples obtained from various species of nonhuman primates (NHPs), to determine whether these percentages varied with respect to glycemic control, and to assess whether this physiologic variable provided a suitable test for diagnosing diabetes mellitus in NHPs. SAMPLE POPULATION: 166 blood samples collected from 121 NHPs comprising 22 species from the Haplorhine and Strepsirhine suborders and including nondiabetic, treated-diabetic, and diabetic animals in 23 zoologic institutions throughout the United States. PROCEDURE: Hemoglobin A1c percentage was measured in 154 samples by use of high-performance liquid chromatography. Total glycated hemoglobin percentage was measured in 159 samples by use of a boronate-affinity chromatographic assay. Glucose concentration was measured in 157 samples with an autochemical analyzer by use of a hexose kinase method. RESULTS: The boronate-affinity chromatographic technique for measurement of total glycated hemoglobin percentage was the most suitable method. Nondiabetic Haplorhines had percentages higher than those in nondiabetic Strepsirhines. In Haplorhines, diabetic animals had percentages higher than those in treated-diabetic animals, which had percentages higher than those in nondiabetic animals. In Strepsirhines, this pattern was less pronounced. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Measurement of total glycated hemoglobin percentage provides useful information for diagnosing diabetes mellitus in Haplorhines and, possibly, in Strepsirhines. Until reference ranges are established for each species, it is recommended that results for samples from NHPs without clinical signs of diabetes mellitus be compared with results of samples collected concomitantly from NHPs with clinical signs of this condition.

Animal Diseases↗

Large area sectioning for morphologic studies of nonhuman primate nasal cavities.

The nasal region is important for studies in inhalation toxicology but is difficult to prepare for histological examination, especially in species as large as primates. A method for the histologic preparation of undecalcified, complete transverse sections of the nonhuman primate nasal cavity is summarized as follows. After removal of excess soft tissue, mandible and calvaria, the head is fixed in 10% neutral buffered formalin. The nasal region is transversely sectioned into serial 3-mm-thick blocks from the nares to the posterior aspect of the soft palate using a low speed saw with a water-cooled diamond-coated blade. The blocks are embedded in a mixture of glycol and methyl methacrylates, with polyethylene glycol-1500 and dibutylphthalate as plasticizers. The plastic blocks average 5.0 x 5.0 x 1.5 cm; 2-4 microns sections are cut on an automated sliding microtome. In spite of the size of the blocks, this technique yields complete transverse sections of the nasal cavities with excellent morphologic detail. The sections are amenable to a wide range of staining procedures. The procedure lends itself to autoradiographic studies. The embedding mixture is ideally suited for studies of undecalcified bone and teeth.

Animals↗

New natural filarial parasites of nonhuman primates in Kenya: a potential use as laboratory model/s for onchocerciasis.

To determine the natural filarial infections in east african nonhuman primates, we initiated a screening study at the Institute of Primate Research (IPR) in 1985. We report the findings of this study for the period between 1985 and 1988. Animals screened were wild-caught from different geographical regions of Kenya for various biomedical studies at IPR. We have recovered three dermal filariae from the animals. Two of these parasites are new and have never been described before. Based on demonstratable microfilariae (mf) there was a total infection rate of 67.10%. The adult stages of these filariae are dermal while the free-living mf live in the skin. Our attempts to transmit these infections to tick vectors have been unsuccessful inspite of tick attachment and engorgement. A susceptible vector remains to be determined.

Animals↗

Carcinogenic and other adverse effects of procarbazine in nonhuman primates.

The carcinogenic potential of procarbazine is under investigation in three species (Macaca mulatta, Macaca fascicularis, and Cercopithecus aethiops) of nonhuman primates. A total of 55 monkeys have received procarbazine s.c., p.o., or i.p. for periods of up to 12 years. Eleven of the 42 monkeys (26%) necropsied thus far have had malignant neoplasms, 6 of which were acute leukemia. Two monkeys developed osteogenic sarcomas, two monkeys developed hemangiosarcomas, and a single case of lymphocytic lymphoma was found. The average total dose of procarbazine received by the monkeys developing cancers was 36.0 g; the average duration of procarbazine treatment was 75 months. A number of the toxic effects of procarbazine seen in humans were also noted in this series of monkeys, including vomiting and myelosuppression. Another striking toxic effect was on the reproductive system of the males. The majority of the adult males necropsied to date have had testicular atrophy with complete aplasia of the germinal epithelium.

Animals↗

Measurement of apolipoprotein A-I concentration in nonhuman primate serum by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

A sensitive and specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for nonhuman primate serum apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I) is described. The assay is a noncompetitive, sandwich ELISA in which polystyrene microtiter plates were used with purified, monospecific goat anti-monkey apoA-I antibodies adsorbed on the wells. The serum samples were added to the coated wells, incubated, and after washing, antibodies conjugated to horseradish peroxidase were added. After further washing, the bound label was assayed. A heat treatment step, 52 degrees C for 3 hr, was used to maximize the apoA-I immunoreactive sites in diluted serum. Serum samples extracted with chloroform-methanol, delipidated with tetramethylurea, or denatured by heating gave essentially equivalent results. The working range of the apoA-I standards was 0.5 to 5 ng and parallel responses were observed for apoA-I in serum, in isolated HDL, and in buffer as a purified apoprotein. Recovery of apoA-I added to serum was quantitative (106 +/- 3%). The intra- and interassay coefficients of variation were 6.2 and 6.9%, respectively. The enzyme immunoassay yielded values that compared favorably with those obtained by radial immunodiffusion (r = 0.84). ApoA-I concentration in African green monkey serum was highly correlated with the HDL cholesterol concentration (r = 0.86). It is concluded that this ELISA is an accurate and precise method for determination of apoA-I concentrations in primate serum.

Animals↗

The nonhuman primate as a model of growth hormone physiology in the human being.

Our review confirms the close correlation of the physiology of GH secretion in the nonhuman primate and the human subject which has not been seen in any other animal model, at least from the studies available to date. Except for a discrepancy in the relationship of GH secretion during early sleep, there are no significant differences between the species that can not likely be explained by methodological differences. Even the discrepancy between nighttime GH secretion may be due to methods of studying the nonhuman subjects. But methodological problems are at the heart of the problem in primate research. Primates are expensive to buy ($800-$1200 is not unusual for an adult male), expensive to house ($2-$3 per day is customary), dangerous to work with (bodily injury and serious infections are equally worrisome to handlers), exquisitely sensitive to environmental factors (as noted above), and above all, the subject of appropriate concern from animal use committees: these factors easily explain the relative dearth of primate studies on GH physiology compared to rodent studies. Problems of handling the animals and ensuring their stable state are helped to large degree by facilities such as the Regional Primate Facilities in the United States. The studies reviewed above should clearly demonstrate that the primate model, in spite of all the difficulties involved, is invaluable in investigating physiological phenomenon impossible to pursue in the human being. But only studies offering fastidious attention to detail in this potentially unstable model of GH physiology are likely to answer more questions than they raise.

Amino Acids↗

Catecholaminergic neurites in senile plaques in prefrontal cortex of aged nonhuman primates.

Immunocytochemical studies, using a polyclonal antibody directed against tyrosine hydroxylase, identified catecholaminergic axons in prefrontal cortex of young and aged nonhuman primates. Aged monkeys, who showed cortical senile plaques in silver stains, had swollen tyrosine hydroxylase-immunoreactive axons in neocortex. Some of these abnormal processes were associated with deposits of amyloid (visualized by thioflavin-T fluorescence) and were similar in appearance to neurites demonstrated by silver impregnation methods. This study provides evidence for structural abnormalities in catecholaminergic axons/nerve terminals in the neocortices of aged primates.

Adrenergic Fibers↗

Alterations in diurnal cortisol rhythm and acoustic startle response in nonhuman primates with adverse rearing.

BACKGROUND: Early adverse experiences represent risk factors for the development of anxiety and mood disorders. Studies in nonhuman primates have largely focused on the impact of protracted maternal and social deprivation, but such intense manipulations also result in severe social and emotional deficits very difficult to remediate. This study attempts to model more subtle developmental perturbations that may increase the vulnerability for anxiety/mood disorders but lack the severe deficits associated with motherless rearing. METHODS: We investigated the consequences of repeated maternal separations between 3 to 6 months of age on rhesus monkeys' hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis function and acoustic startle reactivity. RESULTS: Repetitive maternal separation led to increased cortisol reactivity to the separation protocol in female infants and alterations in mother-infant interaction. It also resulted in a flattened diurnal rhythm of cortisol secretion and increased acoustic startle reactivity at later ages. CONCLUSIONS: Macaques with adverse rearing exhibited short-term and long-term alterations in HPA axis function and increased acoustic startle response comparable with changes associated with mood/anxiety disorders. The magnitude of HPA axis reactivity to the separations and the alterations in mother-infant relationship detected during the separation protocol predicted some of the alterations in HPA axis and emotionality exhibited later in life.

Acoustic Stimulation↗

Renal responses of the cardiac-denervated nonhuman primate to blood volume expansion.

Experiments were performed to determine whether total, specific cardiac denervation affects the renal responses of the nonhuman primate to acute intravascular volume expansion. Adult male Macaca fascicularis monkeys underwent chronic intrapericardial cardiac denervation or sham surgery. After a 14- to 30-day recovery period, each animal was anesthetized with sodium pentobarbital and estimated blood volume was volume-expanded 20% with 6% dextran in isotonic saline. Control renal excretory function did not differ between the two groups, and both groups had similar increases in urine flow, sodium and potassium excretion, osmolar clearance, free water clearance, and renal plasma flow after volume expansion. The times to peak diuresis and natriuresis also were similar in both groups. These results demonstrate that the cardiac-denervated monkey shows unattenuated renal excretory responses to volume expansion. This could indicate that either cardiac receptors do not play a major role in eliciting these responses in the primate or that eliminating a role of cardiac afferents is compensated for by redundant afferents from arterial baroreceptors.

Animals↗

Vitamin C deficiency in captive nonhuman primates fed commercial primate diet.

Scurvy was diagnosed in 19 rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) and four squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) from a colony of nonhuman primates maintained on a commercial diet. Signs of weakness, reluctance to move, gingival hemorrhage, bruising, proximal and distal metaphyseal fractures, weight loss and anemia appeared in juvenile and young adult rhesus monkeys over a 2 week period. Clinical signs subsided after 5 days of vitamin C therapy. At the same time, cephalohematomas and weakness developed in squirrel monkeys, which failed to respond to treatment. These cases were associated with manufacturer's admitted error in preparation of the commercially prepared monkey diet.

Anemia↗

Long-term survival of nonhuman primates receiving life-supporting transgenic porcine kidney xenografts.

BACKGROUND: Recently, there has been a resumed interest in clinical xenotransplantation using pig organs. However, no data are available yet regarding the capacity of porcine organs to sustain the life of a primate beyond the first month. We have attempted to obtain long-term survival of nonhuman primates using human decay-accelerating factor (hDAF) transgenic pig organs and an immunosuppressive strategy particularly aimed at neutralizing the humoral component of the immune response. METHODS: hDAF transgenic or control kidneys were transplanted into 14 bilaterally nephrectomized cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) that underwent splenectomy and were immunosuppressed with cyclosporine A, cyclophosphamide, and steroids. All animals also received recombinant erythropoietin. Postoperatively, the primates were monitored daily. Laboratory evaluations included serum biochemistry, hematology, and measurements of hemolytic antipig antibodies. To assess the role of splenectomy in the control of humoral response, historical data were also used from a group of monkeys (n=7) that received the same immunosuppressive regimen and an hDAF transgenic porcine kidney but did not have splenectomy or receive recombinant erythropoietin. RESULTS: This immunosuppressive approach obtained the longest survival time (78 days) described to date of a primate receiving a life-supporting porcine renal xenograft. Furthermore, four of nine animals in this series survived for 50 days or more. Most biochemical measurements in this study (including plasma urea, creatinine, sodium, and potassium concentrations) remained within normal ranges for several weeks in all of the longest-surviving animals. CONCLUSIONS: Normalization of renal function (urea and creatinine) in primate recipients of porcine renal xenografts suggests that pig kidneys may be suitable for future clinical xenotransplantation. Additional immunosuppressive approaches, specifically designed to prevent humorally mediated immunological damage, should be explored to further prolong survival of primates that have received porcine xenografts.

Animals↗

A serological survey of Ebola virus infection in central African nonhuman primates.

We used an ELISA to determine the prevalence of IgG antibodies specific for the Zaire subtype of Ebola virus in 790 nonhuman primates, belonging to 20 species, studied between 1985 and 2000 in Cameroon, Gabon, and the Republic of Congo. The seroprevalence rate of Ebola antibody in wild-born chimpanzees was 12.9%, indicating that (1) Ebola virus circulates in the forests of a large region of central Africa, including countries such as Cameroon, where no human cases of Ebola infections have been reported; (2) Ebola virus was present in the area before recent outbreaks in humans; (3) chimpanzees are continuously in contact with the virus; and (4) nonlethal Ebola infection can occur in chimpanzees. These results, together with the unexpected detection of Ebola-specific IgG in other species (5 drills, 1 baboon, 1 mandrill, and 1 Cercopithecus), may help to narrow the search for the reservoir of Ebola virus. They also suggest that future Ebola outbreaks may occur anywhere in the central African forest region.

Africa, Central↗