Serum Cobalamin (Vitamin B12) Concentrations in Rhesus Macaques (Macaca mulatta) and Pigtailed Macaques (Macaca nemestrina) with Chronic Idiopathic Diarrhea.

Chronic diarrhea poses a significant threat to the health of NHP research colonies, and its primary etiology remains unclear. In macaques, the clinical presentation of intractable diarrhea and weight loss that are accompanied by inflammatory infiltrates within the gastrointestinal tract closely resembles inflammatory bowel disease of humans, dogs, and cats, in which low serum and tissue cobalamin (vitamin B12) levels are due to intestinal malabsorption. We therefore hypothesized that macaques with chronic idiopathic diarrhea (CID) have lower serum cobalamin concentrations than do healthy macaques. Here we measured serum cobalamin concentrations in both rhesus and pigtailed macaques with CID and compared them with those of healthy controls. Serum cobalamin levels were 2.5-fold lower in pigtailed macaques with CID than control animals but did not differ between rhesus macaques with CID and their controls. This finding supports the use of serum cobalamin concentration as an adjunct diagnostic tool in pigtailed macaques that present with clinical symptoms of chronic gastrointestinal disease. This use of serum vitamin B12 levels has implications for the future use of parenteral cobalamin supplementation to improve clinical outcomes in this species.

Parameters of the center of pressure displacement on the saddle during hippotherapy on different surfaces

Background: Hippotherapy uses horseback riding movements for therapeutic purposes. In addition to the horse's movement, the choice of equipment and types of floor are also useful in the intervention. The quantification of dynamic parameters that define the interaction of the surface of contact between horse and rider provides insight into how the type of floor surface variations act upon the subject's postural control. Objective: To test whether different types of surfaces promote changes in the amplitude (ACOP) and velocity (VCOP) of the center of pressure (COP) displacement during the rider's contact with the saddle on the horse's back. Method: Twenty two healthy adult male subjects with experience in riding were evaluated. The penetration resistances of asphalt, sand and grass surfaces were measured. The COP data were collected on the three surfaces using a pressure measurement mat. Results: ACOP values were higher in sand, followed by grass and asphalt, with significant differences between sand and asphalt (anteroposterior, p=0.042; mediolateral, p=0.019). The ACOP and VCOP values were higher in the anteroposterior than in the mediolateral direction on all surfaces (ACOP, p=0.001; VCOP, p=0.006). The VCOP did not differ between the surfaces. Conclusion: Postural control, measured by the COP displacement, undergoes variations in its amplitude as a result of the type of floor surface. Therefore, these results reinforce the importance of the choice of floor surface when defining the strategy to be used during hippotherapy intervention. .

Optimal iron fortification of maternal diet during pregnancy and nursing for investigating and preventing iron deficiency in young rhesus monkeys.

The realization that pregnant and infant monkeys were challenged by high nutritional needs for iron led vendors to markedly increase iron concentrations in commercial diets. Yet, no systematic research was conducted to investigate the consequences of this important dietary change. Hematology and iron panels were determined for 142 infant rhesus monkeys gestated and reared on 3 different diets varying in iron concentration (180, 225 or 380 mg Fe/kg). Anemia was significantly more prevalent in offspring from females fed the 180 and 225 mg Fe/kg diets (32-41% versus 0 for the 380 mg Fe/kg diet, P<0.001). Higher hepcidin levels were protective against iron overload in infants from the 380 mg Fe/kg condition. These findings indicate a highly fortified diet during pregnancy continues to have postnatal benefits for the growing infant. However, for those interested in iron deficiency, lower iron diets provide a reliable way to generate anemic infant monkeys for research.

Chronic anemia and effects of iron supplementation in a research colony of adult Rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta).

A cohort of rhesus macaques used in neuroscience research was found at routine examinations to have chronic anemia (spun Hct less than 30%). Four anemic (Hct, 24.8% ± 3.4%) and 10 control (39.6% ± 2.9%) macaques were assessed to characterize the anemia and determine probable cause(s); some animals in both groups had cephalic implants. Diagnostic tests included CBC, bone marrow evaluations, iron panels, and serum erythropoietin and hepcidin concentrations. Serum iron and ferritin were 15.8 ± 11.1 µg/dL and 103.8 ± 53.1 ng/mL, respectively, for the anemic group compared with 109.8 ± 23.8 µL/dL and 88.5 ± 41.9 ng/mL, respectively, for the control group. Erythropoietin levels were 16.2 to over 100 mU/mL for the anemic macaques compared with 0 to 1.3 mU/mL for the control group. Hepcidin results were similar in both groups. Because the findings of low iron, high erythropoietin, and normal hepcidin in the anemic macaques supported iron-deficiency anemia or anemia of chronic disease combined with iron-deficiency anemia, a regimen of 4 doses of iron dextran was provided. In treated macaques, Hct rose to 36.3% ± 6.8%, serum iron levels increased to 94.0 ± 41.9 µg/dL, and erythropoietin levels fell to 0.15 to 0.55 mU/mL. Maintenance of normal Hct was variable between macaques and reflected individual ongoing clinical events.

Expression of mRNA for interleukin-1beta, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha and macrophage migration inhibitory factor in HPA-axis tissues in Schistosoma mansoni-infected baboons (Papio cynocephalus).

Cytokines may regulate the function of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis during schistosomiasis. This possibility was investigated in baboons experimentally infected with Schistosoma mansoni. Serum levels of corticotrophin-releasing hormone, adrenocorticotrophin, cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone were confirmed to be decreased in infected baboons as previously shown. To explore if this effect is associated with specific expression of cytokines with endocrine activity, and are also associated with the pathology of the disease, Northern blots for interleukin-1beta, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha and macrophage migration inhibitory factor in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis tissues were performed. Infection induced interleukin-1beta gene expression in the hypothalamus, while interleukin-6 and migration inhibitory factor mRNAs were induced only in the pituitary and adrenal glands. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha gene expression was induced in the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland. Histopathological analysis of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis tissues in infected and control baboons revealed no morphological differences between them. These results suggest that specific cytokines expressed in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis tissues could regulate hormone secretion during schistosomiasis.

Analysis of Japanese monkeys (Macaca fuscata) and dogs with naturally occurring Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) pollinosis.

The natural occurrence of CJ pollinosis has been found in Japanese monkeys and dogs. These animals have reactivity to CJ major allergens. Monkeys and dogs can serve as a suitable animal model in the study of CJ pollinosis.

Susceptibility of tamarin (Saguinus labiatus) red blood cell membrane lipids to oxidative stress: implications for wasting marmoset syndrome.

Captive Callitrichids frequently suffer a fatal wasting disease, wasting marmoset syndrome (WMS), of unexplained cause. This paper describes studies on the erythrocytes from animals in a breeding colony of tamarins (Saguinus labiatus), in which deaths from anaemia and wasting were occurring, to seek evidence for biochemical changes which could lead to oxidative damage and premature cell lysis. In only one animal of 33 studied did the red blood cell lipids show an increased susceptibility to oxidative damage. This animal, with some degree of certainty, could be diagnosed as having WMS. It was concluded that evidence for a primary deficiency of antioxidants as a cause of unexplained deaths, or WMS, in the colony could not at present be substantiated.

Therapeutic efficacy of vitamin E and selenium in treating hemolytic anemia of owl monkeys (Aotus trivirgatus).

The roles played by vitamin E and by selenium in the anemia of owl monkeys were studied by injecting a mixture of the two antioxidants in 17 anemic monkeys. The result was an increase in mean hemoglobin concentration from 8.6 +/- 2.2 to 11.9 +/- 2.5 g/dl; in 1o of these monkeys with typically elevated numbers of circulating nucleated erythrocytes, the mean number of such cells per 10(2) leukocytes declined from 50.1 +/- 49.9 to 0.6 +/- 1.2. Injections of vitamin E alone in eight monkeys were less consistently effective; selenium administered alone to nine monkeys had no therapeutic effect. Neither anemic nor normal owl monkeys were deficient in serum vitamin E, plasma selenium, erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase or other related erythrocyte enzymes. Oral administration of vitamin E brought about no increase in serum levels of the vitamin, but hemolysis of erythrocytes in dialuric acid decreased from 18.6 +/- 15.8% to 1.0 +/- 0.03%. Selenium therapy brought about increased plasma selenium in two of three experiments, but glutathione peroxidase, which is selenium dependent, did not increase.

Changes in blood serum constituents and hematologic values in Macaca mulatta with Rocky Mountain spotted fever.

Forty-seven male Macaca mulatta, 3 to 4 kg weight, were inoculated intravenously or subcutaneously with various doses of yolk sac-grown Rickettsia rickettsii. Thirty-four macaques became febrile and exhibited signs of infection ranging from transient illness with a few days of fever to severe illness with subsequent death. The rash appeared more frequently in the macaques inoculated subcutaneously. Febrile macaques that survived had leukocytosis, with concomitant neutrophilia. Febrile macaques that died had, in addition, marked terminal leukopenia and thrombocytopenia. Packed cell volume of all febrile macaques decreased. In almost all of the febrile macaques, there were increased serum urea nitrogen, glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase, and lactate dehydrogenase and decreased total serum protein and amylase concentrations. A few febrile macaques had increased bilirubin values and decreased sodium, chloride, phosphorus, and alkaline phosphatase concentrations. Changes did not occur in serum glucose, potassium, calcium, and glutamic-pyruvic transaminase values. The experimental form of Rocky Mountain spotted fever in the macaque provides a subhuman primate model for studying the pathophysiology of this disease.