Table 1.
The major advantages of primate models for the areas of biomedical research covered in this review.
| Area of Research | Advantages of Primate Models |
|---|---|
| Atherosclerosis | Similarities in etiology and characteristics of arterial pathology, including reproductive and central nervous system characteristics that promote or protect against atherosclerosis |
| Behavior | Similarities in social and environmental complexity allows for ethologically relevant inputs to behavioral paradigms for social cognition and psychopathology |
| Cognition and Language | The relatively large brain size in NHPs compared to other mammals makes them invaluable for testing evolutionary models of human cognition |
| Cognitive aging | Greater similarities with humans in brain functional specialization associated with cognitive aging, such as the nuclear organization, projection pathways and innervation patterns of the hippocampus |
| Developmental programming | NHPs (but not rodents) share with the humans an interdependence of the fetal and maternal hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis and their interactions with the placenta |
| Genetics | Share with humans fundamental genetic processes relevant to specific diseases (that other mammalian species lack), such as KLK3, the gene that produces prostate-specific antigen |
| HIV/AIDS | The only animal model for HIV/AIDS; provides the chance to control variables and conditions of infection |
| Immunology | Most similar to humans in regards to the developmental maturation of the immune system |
| Neuroscience | NHP brains closely resemble human brains in several ways, including encephalization, the number and density of cortical neurons, a large prefrontal cortex, and greater myelination; additionally, some functional areas of the NHP and human brain do not exist in the rat |
| Pharmacology | Allow for the ability to track changes in the brain and sensitivity to drugs over time, and study individual differences in these effects medications |
| Reproduction | Share with humans key characteristics of endocrine regulation of reproductive physiology not seen in other mammals that include fundamental differences in hypothalamic feedback, ovarian function, the physiology of the uterus and vagina, the establishment and control of pregnancy and menopause |
| Respiratory diseases | Reflect key features of human lung architecture and immunity |