Recommendations for improving photo quality in close range photogrammetry, exemplified in hand bones of chimpanzees and gorillas / Recomendaciones para mejorar la calidad de las fotos en fotogrametría de corto alcance, ejemplificado en huesos de las manos de chimpancés y gorillas

SUMMARY: Photogrammetry is becoming increasingly popular in morphological research and teaching due to its portability, ability to reliably render 3D models, and quality-to-price relationship relative to some popular surface scanners. Compared to surface scanners, however, the learning process in photogrammetry can be very time consuming. Here we describe common mistakes of photo capture in close-range photogrammetry that greatly affect 3D output and tips to improve them. Problems were identified after the 3D model construction of 780 hand bones of chimpanzees and gorillas from museum collections. Their hands are composed of 27 bones which vary in length and complexity. We show how lighting, object position and orientation, camera angle, and background affect the 3D output. By taking these factors into account, time and error rates for beginners can be greatly reduced and 3D model quality can be considerably improved.

RESUMEN: La fotogrametría está siendo cada vez más popular en la investigación y enseñanza morfológica. Esto debido a su portabilidad, confiabilidad de los modelos 3D y buena relación calidadprecio. Comparada con los escáneres de superficie, sin embargo, el proceso de aprendizaje de la fotogrametría puede llevar mucho tiempo. Aquí se describen errores comunes en la toma de fotos para fotogrametería que afectan de manera importante la creación de los modelos 3D, así como consejos para superarlos. Los problemas descritos fueron identificados luego de la construcción de 780 modelos 3D de huesos de la mano de chimpancés y gorillas depositados en distintas colecciones de museos. Las manos de estas especies están compuestas por 27 huesos que varían en tamaño y complejidad. En este artículo mostramos como la luz, la posición y orientación del objeto, el ángulo de la cámara y el fondo de la imagen afectan el resultado en 3D. Considerando estos factores, personas que están aprendiendo esta técnica pueden reducir de manera importante el tiempo y la probabilidad de error, y mejorar considerablemente la calidad de los modelos 3D.

Relation between the level of self-mutilation and the concentration of fecal metabolites of glucocorticoids incaptive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) / Relação do grau de automutilação com as concentrações de metabólitos fecais de glicocorticoides em chimpanzés (Pan troglodytes)

The influence of stress in an environment, according with the behavioral and endocrine variables of primates, are increasingly being studied by a diversity of authors, and have shown that abnormal behaviors associated with increased glucocorticoids may be directly related with the impairment of their well-being. In this work were used 22 adult chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), 11 males and 11 females, kept in captivity in three different institutions. All animals had their behavior registered by focal session using a 30 seconds sample interval, during six months, totaling 4,800 registries per each animal. During this period, fecal samples were collected 3 times a week for the extraction and measurement of the concentration of fecal metabolites of glucocorticoid by radioimmunoassay. Of the total observed, stereotypical behaviors represented 13,45±2.76%, and among them, self-mutilation represented 38.28±3.98 %. The animals were classified into three different scores, according with the percentage of body surface with alopecia due to self-mutilation. It was found a positive correlation of high intensity between the scores of alopecia due to the observed mutilation and the average concentrations of fecal metabolites of glucocorticoids. This result strongly suggests that this measurement of self-mutilation in a chimpanzee can be used as an important auxiliary tool to evaluate de conditions of adaptation of an animal in captivity, functioning as a direct indicator of the presence of chronic stress...

A influência do estresse de um ambiente nas variáveis endócrino-comportamentais de primatas vem sendo cada vez mais estudada por diversos autores, e mostram que comportamentos anormais associados a aumentos de glicocorticóides podem estar diretamente relacionados ao comprometimento do bem-estar. Neste trabalho foram utilizados 22 chimpanzés (Pan troglodytes) adultos, sendo 11 machos e 11 fêmeas mantidos em cativeiro de três instituições diferentes. Todos os animais tiveram seus comportamentos registrados pelo método de amostragem focal por intervalo de tempo, durante seis meses, totalizando 4800 registros para cada animal. Amostras fecais foram coletadas três vezes por semana, durante este período, para extração e dosagem de metabólitos fecais de glicocorticoides por radioimunoensaio. Os comportamentos estereotipados representaram 13,45+2,76% do total observado, sendo que dentre estes comportamentos a automutilação representou 38,28+3,98%. Os animais foram classificados em três graus diferentes, de acordo com o percentual da superfície corpórea com alopecia decorrente da automutilação. Foi encontrada uma correlação positiva de intensidade forte entre os graus de alopecia decorrentes de mutilação observados e as médias de concentrações de metabólitos fecais de glicocorticoides. Este resultado sugere fortemente que esta graduação de automutilação de um chimpanzé possa ser utilizada como uma ferramenta auxiliar importante nas avaliações das condições de adaptação do animal ao cativeiro, atuando como um indicador indireto da presença de estresse crônico...

Disease association and inter-connectivity analysis of human brain specific co-expressed functional modules

BACKGROUND: In the recent studies, it is suggested that the analysis of transcriptomic change of functional modules instead of individual genes would be more effective for system-wide identification of cellular functions. This could also provide a new possibility for the better understanding of difference between human and chimpanzee. RESULTS: In this study, we analyzed to find molecular characteristics of human brain functions from the difference of transcriptome between human and chimpanzee's brain using the functional module-centric co-expression analysis. We performed analysis of brain disease association and systems-level connectivity of species-specific co-expressed functional modules. CONCLUSIONS: Throughout the analyses, we found human-specific functional modules and significant overlap between their genes in known brain disease genes, suggesting that human brain disorder could be mediated by the perturbation of modular activities emerged in human brain specialization. In addition, the human-specific modules having neurobiological functions exhibited higher networking than other functional modules. This finding suggests that the expression of neural functions are more connected than other functions, and the resulting high-order brain functions could be identified as a result of consolidated inter-modular gene activities. Our result also showed that the functional module based transcriptome analysis has a potential to expand molecular understanding of high-order complex functions like cognitive abilities and brain disorders.

Molecular evolution and expression profile of the chemerine encoding gene RARRES2 in baboon and chimpanzee

BACKGROUND: Chemerin, encoded by the retinoic acid receptor responder 2 (RARRES2) gene is an adipocytesecreted protein with autocrine/paracrine functions in adipose tissue, metabolism and inflammation with a recently described function in vascular tone regulation, liver, steatosis, etc. This molecule is believed to represent a critical endocrine signal linking obesity to diabetes. There are no data available regarding evolution of RARRES2 in non-human primates and great apes. Expression profile and orthology in RARRES2 genes are unknown aspects in the biology of this multigene family in primates. Thus; we attempt to describe expression profile and phylogenetic relationship as complementary knowledge in the function of this gene in primates. To do that, we performed A RT-PCR from different tissues obtained during necropsies. Also we tested the hypotheses of positive evolution, purifying selection, and neutrality. And finally a phylogenetic analysis was made between primates RARRES2 protein. RESULTS: RARRES2 transcripts were present in liver, lung, adipose tissue, ovary, pancreas, heart, hypothalamus and pituitary tissues. Expression in kidney and leukocytes were not detectable in either species. It was determined that the studied genes are orthologous. CONCLUSIONS: RARRES2 evolution fits the hypothesis of purifying selection. Expression profiles of the RARRES2 gene are similar in baboons and chimpanzees and are also phylogenetically related.

Cultura e inteligência: reflexões antropológicas sobre aspectos não físicos da evolução em chimpanzés e humanos / Culture and intelligence: anthropological reflections on non-physical aspects of evolution in chimpanzees and humans

Trata da história recente dos estudos sobre o comportamento de chimpanzés, enfatizando os resultados das pesquisas, as proposições acerca da existência de 'culturas de chimpanzés' e sua validade. O trabalho problematiza a ideia a partir dos mecanismos de transmissão e aprendizado social bem como de concepções antropológicas e paleoantropológicas de cultura que associam tal fenômeno, entre humanos modernos, às suas capacidades simbólicas e cognitivas.

The scope of this work is the recent history of studies on the behavior of chimpanzees, emphasizing research results, propositions about the existence of 'chimpanzee cultures' and their validity. The work discusses the idea based on transmission mechanisms and social learning as well as anthropological and paleoanthropological concepts of culture that associate such phenomena, among modern humans, to their symbolic and cognitive abilities.

Molecular cloning, sequence identification and tissue expression profile of three novel sheep (Ovis aries) genes - BCKDHA, NAGA and HEXA

The complete coding sequences of three sheep genes- BCKDHA, NAGA and HEXA were amplified using the reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), based on the conserved sequence information of the mouse or other mammals. The nucleotide sequences of these three genes revealed that the sheep BCKDHA gene encodes a protein of 313 amino acids which has high homology with the BCKDHA gene that encodes a protein of 447 amino acids that has high homology with the Branched chain keto acid dehydrogenase El, alpha polypeptide (BCKDHA) of five species chimpanzee (93 percent), human (96 percent), crab-eating macaque (93 percent), bovine (98 percent) and mouse (91 percent). The sheep NAGA gene encodes a protein of 411 amino acids that has high homology with the alpha-N-acetylgalactosaminidase (NAGA) of five species human (85 percent), bovine (94 percent), mouse (91 percent), rat (83 percent) and chicken (74 percent). The sheep HEXA gene encodes a protein of 529 amino acids that has high homology with the hexosaminidase A(HEXA) of five species bovine (98 percent), human (84 percent), Bornean orangután (84 percent), rat (80 percent) and mouse (81 percent). Finally these three novel sheep genes were assigned to GenelDs: 100145857, 100145858 and 100145856. The phylogenetic tree analysis revealed that the sheep BCKDHA, NAGA, and HEXA all have closer genetic relationships to the BCKDHA, NAGA, and HEXA of bovine. Tissue expression profile analysis was also carried out and results revealed that sheep BCKDHA, NAGA and HEXA genes were differentially expressed in tissues including muscle, heart, liver, fat, kidney, lung, small and large intestine. Our experiment is the first to establish the primary foundation for further research on these three sheep genes.

Validação laboratorial e fisiológica de conjunto comercial para a quantificação de corticóides fecais em chimpanzé (Pan troglodytes) e orangotango (Pongo pygmaeus), cativos e submetidos a enriquecimentos ambientais / Laboratorial and physiological validation of comercial kits for quantification of fecal corticoids of captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and orangutangs (Pongo pygmaeus) under environmental enriched conditions

Neste trabalho foi realizado estudo comparativo dos níveis de corticóides fecais (CF) de chimpanzé (Pan troglodytes) e orangotango(Pongo pygmaeus). Foram analisadas amostras coletadas em duas fases distintas, relacionadas com a introdução de técnicas de enriquecimento ambiental, a saber: Base (antes da introdução) e Habituação(imediatamente após). Realizamos as validações do conjunto comercial para radioimunoensaio ImmunuChem™ Double Antibody Corticosterone da MP Biomedicals, para mensuração de CF. A validação laboratorial dos conjuntos diagnósticos para uso em extrato fecal de primatas foi realizada pelo método de paralelismo, no qual, para cada espécie, concentrações conhecidas de corticosterona foram adicionadas a um pool de extratos fecais, sendo estas amostras analisadas em seguida. As inclinações das curvas obtidas nestes ensaios e da curva padrão do ensaio foram então comparadas. Os resultados obtidos para chimpanzé e orangotango, foram respectivamente, Y=17,23+1,31*X;R...

A comparative study of fecal corticoids (FC) concentrations was carried out with chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) e orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus). Fecal samples were collected before (Basal) and just after (Habituation)enrichment introduction and analyzed. We performed biochemical and physiological validations of the ImmunuChem™ Double Antibody Corticosterone kit for radioimmunoassay from MP Biomedicals for quantifying FC concentrations. To establish the biochemical validity of our assay we performed parallelism assays in which pooled fecal extracts from both species were spiked with known quantities of corticosterone standard and the slopes of the curves obtained with these samples and the standard curves of the kits were compared. The correlation coefficients were R

Mental rotation of anthropoid hands: a chronometric study

It has been shown that mental rotation of objects and human body parts is processed differently in the human brain. But what about body parts belonging to other primates? Does our brain process this information like any other object or does it instead maximize the structural similarities with our homologous body parts? We tried to answer this question by measuring the manual reaction time (MRT) of human participants discriminating the handedness of drawings representing the hands of four anthropoid primates (orangutan, chimpanzee, gorilla, and human). Twenty-four right-handed volunteers (13 males and 11 females) were instructed to judge the handedness of a hand drawing in palm view by pressing a left/right key. The orientation of hand drawings varied from 0° (fingers upwards) to 90° lateral (fingers pointing away from the midline), 180° (fingers downwards) and 90° medial (finger towards the midline). The results showed an effect of rotation angle (F(3, 69) = 19.57, P < 0.001), but not of hand identity, on MRTs. Moreover, for all hand drawings, a medial rotation elicited shorter MRTs than a lateral rotation (960 and 1169 ms, respectively, P < 0.05). This result has been previously observed for drawings of the human hand and related to biomechanical constraints of movement performance. Our findings indicate that anthropoid hands are essentially equivalent stimuli for handedness recognition. Since the task involves mentally simulating the posture and rotation of the hands, we wondered if "mirror neurons" could be involved in establishing the motor equivalence between the stimuli and the participants' own hands.

Cryptosporidium parvum en animales domésticos y en monos de un zoológico / Cryptosporidium parvum in domestic animals and in monkeys from a zoo

El objetivo del trabajo fue detectar infecciones por Cryptosporidium sp en animales domésticos y en monos de un zoológico, en la provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina. Se procesaron 375 muestras de materia fecal de distintas especies mediante la técnica de sedimentación de Ritchie modificada (formol -éter) para concentrar los ooquistes. El sedimento se tiñó mediante la técnica de Ziehl-Neelsen modificada. Se detectaron ooquistes de Cryptosporidium sp en 7 de 175 muestras de materia fecal de perro, en 2 de 17 de gato, en 4 de 22 de ovinos, en 21 de 131 cabras, en 29 de 109 de terneros, en 2 de 2 de equinos y en 2 de 5 de cobayos (Cavia porcellus). Se examinaron 14 muestras de heces de monos, entre ellas, se detectaron ooquistes en la muestra de 1 hembra carayá (Alouatta caraya) adulta, en la de 1 mono araña (Ateles paniscus) macho adulto, en la muestra colectiva de 7 monos saimiri (Saimiri boliviensis) adultos, en la muestra de 2 hembras y 1 macho caí (Cebus apella), en la muestra colectiva de hamadríades (Papio hamadryas) y en la de 1 chimpancé joven (Pan troglodytes).

Uterine leiomyoma in chimpanzee ( Pan troglodytes )

Uma chimpanzé de 22 anos de idade foi necropsiada com histórico clínico de anorexia, vômitos freqüentes e desidratação conseqüentes à gastrite iatrogênica. Macroscopicamente, o útero apresentava-se aumentado de volume, com o lúmen totalmente ocluído por nódulos firmes, esbranquiçados e coalescentes que se estendiam para o miométrio. Histologicamente, os nódulos eram constituídos por leiomiócitos bem diferenciados dispostos em várias direções e com coloração característica pelo tricrômio de Gomori e Masson. Pela imunoistoquímica, as células neoplásicas apresentavam marcação forte e difusa de receptores para progesterona e estrógeno, assim como de actina alfa de músculo liso. Algumas células neoplásicas e o estroma apresentavam marcação para vimentina e poucas células neoplásicas foram positivas para MIB-1. Com base nas características mosrfológicas e imunoistoquímicas foi firmado o diagnóstico de leiomioma uterino.

Comparative analysis of human masculinity

To study rapidly evolving male specific Y (MSY) genes we retrieved and analyzed nine such genes. VCY, HSFY and RBMY were found to have functional X gametologs, but the rest did not. Using chimpanzee orthologs for XKRY, CDY, HSFY, PRY, and TSPY, the average silent substitution is estimated as 0.017 +/- 0.006/site and the substitution rate is 1.42 x 10(-9)/site/year. Except for VCY, all other loci possess two or more pseudogenes on the Y chromosome. Sequence differences from functional genes show that BPY2, DAZ, XKRY, and RBMY each have one pseudogene for each one that is human specific, while others were generated well before the human-chimpanzee split, by means of duplication, retro-transposition or translocation. Some functional MSY gene duplication of VCY, CDY and HSFY, as well as X-linked VCX and HSFX duplication, occurred in the lineage leading to humans; these duplicates have accumulated nucleotide substitutions that permit their identification.

Os parentes de nossos parentes: um ensaio sobre a sociedade e as culturas dos chimpanzés sob uma perspectiva antropológica / Relatives of our relatives: an essay about the society and the cultures of chimpanzees from an anthropological perspective

Análises comparativas do comportamento em populações de chimpanzés revelaram a existência de variabilidade assim como de homogeneidade, entre os grupos levando pesquisadores a afirmar que existem "culturas de chimpanzés". Os resultados dessas análises podem produzir um forte impacto sobre as idéias correntes acerca das relações entre natureza e cultura. O presente texto apresenta uma discussão a respeito da noção de "culturas de chimpanzés" à luz da antropologia sociocultural, apontando possibilidades e limites. A perspectiva antropológica pode estimular a reflexão sobre a relevância do método sobre o dado, a idéia de totalidade, a construção da alteridade, a questão do significado nas pesquisas sobre comportamento de chimpanzés ou a importância da organização social nas concepções de cultura

A mirror for the self

Do animals own self-awareness and a self-concept? A classical yes answer to such question, based on self-recognition reactions chimpanzees and some other apes perform when looking at their mirror-image is critically discussed. A multiple features approach to self-knowledge which considers knowledge about the body, socially-mediated and linguistic self-knowledge is proposed as a framework for comparative research.

Chimpanzees and supporting models in the study of malaria pre-erythrocytic stages

Chimpanzees are being used in the study of immune response to Plasmodium falciparum malaria pre-erythrocytic stages (MPES). Responses induced by immunisation with recombinant/synthetic antigens and by irradiated sporozoites are being evaluated in a model system that is phylogenetically close to humans and that is amenable to limited manipulation not possible in humans. The value of chimpanzees for the in-depth study of immunological mechanisms at work in MPES-induced protection are discussed. A total number of 7 chimpanzees have been used to evaluate the immune response to recombinant antigens, and 5 have been challenged with large numbers of sporozoites, followed by surgical liver-wedge resection, in order to generate infected liver tissue for histological and immunological studies. As a complementary model, SCID mice carrying live, transplanted human and primate hepatocytes have been inoculated with sporozoites and infection of transplanted cells has been monitored by histological and immunological methods. In ongoing experiments chimpanzees are being immunised with MPES-derived lipopeptides that have been shown to overcome MHC restriction in mice, and with irradiated sporozoites.

Modelos animales de la infeccion por VIH y del SIDA: Memorandum de una Reunión de la OMS / Animal models for HIV infection and AIDS: Memorandum from a WHO Meeting

Animal models may be used for the study of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) infection and AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). Three major animal models that reproduce many aspects of HIV infection in man are available: infection by simian immunodeficiency viruses (SIV) and by non-primates lentiviruses, and HIV infection of non-human primates. The use of primate and nom-primate lentivirus models is critical for the continued development of vaccines and therapeutics for AIDS. This Memorandum describes the present situation in this área of research, as reported by the participants at a WHO Consultation in Geneva, Switzerland, in March 1988, and includes their recommendations

Comparison of pathologic changes in mammalian hosts infected with Schistosoma mansoni, S. japonicum and S. haematobium

The hepatic, intestinal and cardiopulmonary lesions produced by Schistosoma mansoni, S. haematobium and S. japonicum in man and experimental animals often bear striking similarities but usually have distinctive features as well. These are often related to parasitologic differences. Thus S. japonicum and S. haematobium lay their eggs in clusters which elicit the formation of large composite granulomas. The worms of these two species also tend to be sedentary, remaining in a single location for prolonged periods, thus producing large focal lesions in the intestines or urinary tract. Worm pairs of these two species also are gregarious and many worm pairs are often found in a single lesion. The size of circumoval granulomas, and the degree of fibrosis, are T cell dependent. The modulation of granuloma size is largely T cell dependent in mice infected with S. mansoni but is mostly regulated by serum factors in S. japonicum infected mice. In spite of these differences in egg laying and immunoregulation both S. mansoni and S. japonicum produce Symmers' fibrosis in the chimpanzee while S. haematobium does not, despite the presence of numerous eggs in the liver.