The genome of the vervet (Chlorocebus aethiops sabaeus).

We describe a genome reference of the African green monkey or vervet (Chlorocebus aethiops). This member of the Old World monkey (OWM) superfamily is uniquely valuable for genetic investigations of simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), for which it is the most abundant natural host species, and of a wide range of health-related phenotypes assessed in Caribbean vervets (C. a. sabaeus), whose numbers have expanded dramatically since Europeans introduced small numbers of their ancestors from West Africa during the colonial era. We use the reference to characterize the genomic relationship between vervets and other primates, the intra-generic phylogeny of vervet subspecies, and genome-wide structural variations of a pedigreed C. a. sabaeus population. Through comparative analyses with human and rhesus macaque, we characterize at high resolution the unique chromosomal fission events that differentiate the vervets and their close relatives from most other catarrhine primates, in whom karyotype is highly conserved. We also provide a summary of transposable elements and contrast these with the rhesus macaque and human. Analysis of sequenced genomes representing each of the main vervet subspecies supports previously hypothesized relationships between these populations, which range across most of sub-Saharan Africa, while uncovering high levels of genetic diversity within each. Sequence-based analyses of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) polymorphisms reveal extremely low diversity in Caribbean C. a. sabaeus vervets, compared to vervets from putatively ancestral West African regions. In the C. a. sabaeus research population, we discover the first structural variations that are, in some cases, predicted to have a deleterious effect; future studies will determine the phenotypic impact of these variations.

Low circulating levels of bisphenol-A induce cognitive deficits and loss of asymmetric spine synapses in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and hippocampus of adult male monkeys.

Bisphenol-A (BPA) is widely used in the manufacture of plastics, epoxy resins, and certain paper products. A majority of the population in the developed world is routinely exposed to BPA from multiple sources and has significant circulating levels of BPA. Although BPA is categorized as an endocrine disruptor with a growing literature on adverse effects, it is uncertain whether cognitive dysfunction is induced in humans by exposure to BPA. The present study examined the impact of BPA in primate brain by exposing adult male vervet monkeys for 4 weeks continuously to circulating levels of BPA that were in the range measured in studies of humans environmentally exposed to BPA. This regimen of exposure to BPA decreased both working memory accuracy and the number of excitatory synaptic inputs on dendritic spines of pyramidal neurons in two brain regions that are necessary for working memory (prefrontal cortex and hippocampus). These observed behavioral and synaptic effects were ameliorated following withdrawal from BPA. As Old World monkeys (e.g., vervets) and humans share some uniquely primate morphological, endocrine, and cognitive traits, this study indicates the potential for significant cognitive disruption following exposure of humans to BPA.