Primate Medicine

Primate Medicine provides veterinary care and veterinary research support to investigators. In addition to providing clinical care to a colony of over 4,700 nonhuman primates, Primate Medicine also provides services in: project consultation, experimental surgery, catheterizations, endoscopy, anesthesia support, physical exams, telemetry implants, experimental design, biopsies, ultrasound, laparoscopy, post-operative recovery, and dentistry.

Primate Medicine is also committed to teaching and training. Clinicians from Primate Services teach courses in the School of Veterinary Medicine, teach junior and senior students clinical skills at the CNPRC, and train laboratory animal medicine residents from UC Davis, Scripps Research Institute, and other visiting institutions. The CNPRC also hosts visiting veterinarians from institutions nationally and internationally.

Primate infants that are sick or injured are cared for in the nursery. Like human infants, they find stuffed animals comforting when they are hospitalized.

Projects with interaction between the veterinary staff and collaborative investigators include:

• Determination of the age of onset and hormonal profile of menopause in aged rhesus
• Pharmacokinetics and efficacy of medetomedine in nonhuman
  primate anesthesia
• Efficacy of canine distemper/measles vaccine as an alternative in nonhuman primates
  to the human measles vaccine
• Development of a diabetic model for
  pancreatic islet xenotransplantation
• nonhuman primate model of xenotransplantation and immunosuppression
• Assessment of immunogenecity and safety of adjuvants used in nonhuman primate research

Primate Services is the centralized unit for animal care, colony management, maintenance of facilities, staff training, occupational safety, research support, and data management.

This unit's:

• Mission is insure the health of the nonhuman primates.
• Objective is to continue to develop the CNPRC as a national resource.
• Overall approach is to operate a centralized program that handles every aspect of animal husbandry and health care.

The CNPRC has initiated an Environmental Enrichment Program for the benefit of all indoor animals. Daily socialization has been achieved for many of these animals by careful pairings. The goal is to provide daily social contact for all animals, and to facilitate psychological well-being through provision of multiple forms of environmental enrichment.

The CNPRC has three species of nonhuman primates:

Rhesus Macaques (Macaca mulatta) -

The colony includes approximately 3,000 rhesus macaques, which are the monkeys most frequently used in research. Most of these animals live outdoors in social groups, as they are quite tolerant of the Davis climate.

Long-tailed Macaques (Macaca fascicularis) -

Approximately 675 long-tailed macaques are housed at the CNPRC. These monkeys are used primarily in reproductive studies, as they are more likely to cycle and breed year-round, unlike the seasonally breeding rhesus macaque.

Titi Monkeys (Callicebus moloch) -

CNPRC maintains a small colony of titi monkeys, which are small, monogamous monkeys originating in South America. Titi monkeys are used primarily in biobehavioral studies of attachment and parental behavior.

Staff Scientists

• Nick Lerche, D.V.M., M.P.V.M., Associate Director
• David Glenn Smith, Ph.D.