REGIONAL PRIMATE RESEARCH CENTER

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This is a request for support of the operation of the Tulane Regional Primate Research Center for the next five year period. Research will be done utilizing nonhuman primates primarily in the area of infectious diseases. Research projects described in this application include studies to: improve our understanding of the disease processes involved in AIDS, elucidate the molecular aspects of virulence with immunodeficiency viruses and other retroviruses, examine maternal-fetal transmission of AIDS, define the interaction of simian immunodeficiency virus and other pathogens, evaluate antiviral substances against SIV and other viruses, define the pathophysiology of pyelonephritis, determine the effect of age and hormones on urinary tract infections, develop vaccine approaches to urinary tract infections, develop rational approaches to immunoprophylaxis against Lyme disease, define the immunopathology of filarial infections, isolate protective antigens in filariae, analyze proteins associated with the malaria hypnozoite, evaluate leprosy vaccines, examine the etiology of arthritis in nonhuman primates, evaluate measles vaccination in primates, discern the possible role of coronaviruses in multiple sclerosis, improve our understanding of urinary tract infections, examine the interaction of behavior and the immune response, define the subclasses of immunoglobulins in primates and examine genes of the major histocompatibility complex. Non-infectious disease research includes projects on globoid cell leukodystrophy, environmental enrichment of primate enclosures, the measure of bladder physiology parameters by telemetry, and reproductive studies such as oocyte culture, in vitro fertilization, superovulation, and the cryopreservation of gametes. In addition to the research programs of the core staff, breeding colonies will be maintained and some are proposed for expansion. The primate center will provide a regional and national resource for investigators whose research programs we can accommodate.