Table 1.
List of NHP used in reproductive health research.
| Animal | Species | Average Life span (years) | Average size (cm) | Average weight (kg) | Menstrual length (days)* | Advantages/disadvantages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olive baboon | Papio anubis | 25–30 | M: 70 F: 60 |
M: 24 F: 14.7 |
30–35 [23] | Advantages: anatomical and physiological closeness to humans, large size (facilitates procedures), straight cervix, readily available, non-threatened, can visually monitor cycle stage with greatest precision Disadvantages: large size and strength, large housing requirements |
| African Green Monkey (Vervet, Grivet) [24, 25] | Chlorocebus aethiops (formerly Cercopithecus aethiops) | 11–13 (captive) | M: 49 F: 42.6 |
M: 5.5 F: 4.1 |
30–32 [26] | Advantages: anatomical and physiological closeness to humans, manageable size, readily available, non-threatened Disadvantages: tortuous Cervix, cannot visually monitor cycle stage |
| Common marmoset | Callithrix jacchus | 12 (wild) | M: 18.8 F: 18.5 |
.350–.450* [27] | 22–28 | Advantages: anatomical and physiological closeness to humans, manageable size, readily available, non-threatened Disadvantages: no menstruation (has estrus cycle) [4], small size (precludes certain procedures); ovulation pattern slightly different from humans (twinning is the normal state), cannot visually monitor cycle stage |
|
| ||||||
| Macaques | ||||||
| Pigtailed | Macaca nemestrina | 26 | M: 49.5–56.4 F: 46.7–56.4 |
M: 6.2–14.5 F: 4.7–10.9 |
30–40 [28] | Advantages: anatomy of reproductive tract tissues and physiology of menstrual cycle similar to humans, size (facilitates most procedures), non-threatened, can visually monitor cycle stage to some degree Disadvantages: limited availability, some species are seasonal breeders (rhesus, possibly Formosan rock macaque), tortuous cervix, aggressive temperament (rhesus), zoonotic disease risk |
| Formosan rock macaque (Taiwan monkey) | Macaca cyclopis | NA | 40–55* | 4–8* | 24–31 | |
| Rhesus | Macaca mulatta | 25 | M: 53.2 F: 46.9 |
M: 7.7 F: 5.34 |
28 | |
| Cynomolgus | Macaca fascicularis | 31 | M: 41–65 F: 39–50 |
M: 4.7–8.3 F: 2.5–5.7 |
28–32 [29, 30] | |
NA: not available. *Differences between males and females were not noted.