RHESUS BREEDING COLONY IN NEPAL AND IMPORTATION TO USA

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This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. Primary support for the subproject and the subproject's principal investigator may have been provided by other sources, including other NIH sources. The Total Cost listed for the subproject likely represents the estimated amount of Center infrastructure utilized by the subproject, not direct funding provided by the NCRR grant to the subproject or subproject staff. There is a severe shortage of rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) required to fulfill critical needs in research on AIDS, on development of vaccines against infectious agents that could be used as biological weapons, and on a wide variety of other topics in biomedical research. Rhesus macaques derived from monkeys of Indian origin have unique characteristics that are particularly valuable in research on the development of AIDS vaccines. Despite the recent expansion of breeding colonies in the United States, the shortage of these important research animals is actually increasing in severity, accentuating the need for new sources of Indian-type rhesus. Indian-type rhesus macaques exist in large numbers throughout many regions of Nepal. The production and exportation of captive born rhesus macaques is approved under Nepalese law. The objective of this proposal is to address the urgent need for a new source of Indian-type rhesus macaques for use in biomedical research by developing a captive breeding colony in Nepal. We are developing a self-sustaining colony capable of supplying 75 animals per year to the US to meet critical biomedical research needs.