Development of an SPF Macaca nemestrina Breeding Colony

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The use of pig-tailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina) in all areas of medical research has increased to the point that demand exceeds supply and increased research activity in bioterrorism will undoubtedly increase the demand for nonhuman primates in the near future. The resulting increased prices and increased delays in procuring monkeys hinder the ability to conduct funded research. Researchers in many fields have experienced similar disruptions in their ability to conduct research. The primary objective of this application is to develop a new national resource that will supply SPF pig-tailed macaques to researchers across the country. The proposed resource-related research would also further the usefulness of the pig-tailed macaque as a research model through the development of key reagents for research in the immunology. Pig-tailed macaques are used in a wide variety of medical research. AIDS research is the newest demand on the supply of pig-tailed macaques, but in the last 5 years, 75% of published studies with pig-tailed macaques have been in non-AIDS research areas. As demand for pig-tailed macaques has increased, paradoxically, commercial breeding sources have declined production. Covance, disbanded their pig-tailed macaque breeding program, and LABS of Virginia reduced their breeding stock by one third. The Yerkes and Washington National Primate Research Centers (WaNPRC)/Tulane NRPRC and the New Iberia Primate Research Center are the only facilities with a sizable pig-tailed macaque breeding program. Despite recent increases in their breeding capacity, officials at WaNPRC indicate that they will not be able to meet the current and expected demand for pig-tailed macaques in research. Funding of this application will allow the continued expansion of an existing colony to approximately 125 breeding-age females yielding enough animals to maintain the breeding stock and produce approximately 62 offspring each year. With a colony this size, 50% of the male offspring would be made available for sale at market prices to researchers outside of the Johns Hopkins University. Demand for pig-tailed macaques from NIH funded grants already exceeds current supplies. New national research infrastructure must be developed to help meet existing and future research demands.