Administration of thimerosal-containing vaccines to infant rhesus macaques does not result in autism-like behavior or neuropathology.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder. Some anecdotal reports suggest that ASD is related to exposure to ethyl mercury, in the form of the vaccine preservative, thimerosal, and/or receiving the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine. Using infant rhesus macaques receiving thimerosal-containing vaccines (TCVs) following the recommended pediatric vaccine schedules from the 1990s and 2008, we examined behavior, and neuropathology in three brain regions found to exhibit neuropathology in postmortem ASD brains.

Examination of the safety of pediatric vaccine schedules in a non-human primate model: assessments of neurodevelopment, learning, and social behavior.

Background: In the 1990s, the mercury-based preservative thimerosal was used in most pediatric vaccines. Although there are currently only two thimerosal-containing vaccines (TCVs) recommended for pediatric use, parental perceptions that vaccines pose safety concerns are affecting vaccination rates, particularly in light of the much expanded and more complex schedule in place today.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to examine the safety of pediatric vaccine schedules in a non-human primate model.

Four decades of leading-edge research in the reproductive and developmental sciences: the Infant Primate Research Laboratory at the University of Washington National Primate Research Center.

The Infant Primate Research Laboratory (IPRL) was established in 1970 at the University of Washington as a visionary project of Dr. Gene (Jim) P. Sackett.

Post-drug consequences of chronic atypical antipsychotic drug administration on the ability to adjust behavior based on feedback in young monkeys.

Rationale: Atypical antipsychotic drugs are characterized by their affinity for serotonin and dopamine receptors. The dopaminergic system undergoes developmental changes during childhood, making it vulnerable to external influences such as drug administration.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the long-term effects of administering risperidone and quetiapine to 12-24-month-old macaque monkeys on cognitive development, a maturational equivalent to 4-8-year-old children.

Some effects of risperidone and quetiapine on growth parameters and hormone levels in young pigtail macaques.

Objective: Atypical antipsychotic drugs are prescribed to young children for a number of symptoms, some with no Food and Drug Administration approval for children. Effects on growth of children have received little experimental study. We assessed the effects of two atypicals, risperidone and quetiapine, on growth, prolactin, and thyroid hormones of young pigtail macaques (macaca nemestrina), modeling potential effects on 4-8-year-old children.

Delayed acquisition of neonatal reflexes in newborn primates receiving a thimerosal-containing hepatitis B vaccine: influence of gestational age and birth weight.

This study examined whether acquisition of neonatal reflexes in newborn rhesus macaques was influenced by receipt of a single neonatal dose of hepatitis B vaccine containing the preservative thimerosal (Th). Hepatitis B vaccine containing a weight-adjusted Th dose was administered to male macaques within 24 h of birth (n = 13). Unexposed animals received saline placebo (n = 4) or no injection (n = 3).

WITHDRAWN: Delayed acquisition of neonatal reflexes in newborn primates receiving a thimerosal-containing Hepatitis B vaccine: Influence of gestational age and birth weight.

This article has been withdrawn at the request of the editor. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. The full Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal can be found at http://www.

Comparability of developmental cognitive assessments between standard and computer testing methods.

Substantial questions have been raised about the validity of using computer-based testing to assess cognitive development with young children. However, little work has been done to assess the comparability of performance elicited using computerized methods with performance garnered using standard testing methods. The purpose of this study was to establish whether computerized testing resulted in performance that was different than established performance norms for infant monkeys (Macaca nemestrina) tested on four highly used cognitive tasks.

A computer touch screen system and training procedure for use with primate infants: Results from pigtail monkeys (Macaca nemestrina).

Computerized cognitive and perceptual testing has resulted in many advances towards understanding adult brain-behavior relations across a variety of abilities and species. However, there has been little migration of this technology to the assessment of very young primate subjects. We describe a training procedure and software that was developed to teach infant monkeys to interact with a touch screen computer.

The effect of experience on the development of tactual-visual transfer in pigtailed macaque monkeys.

The study described here is the first to experimentally demonstrate the effects of experience on the development of tactual-visual transfer. Infant pigtailed macaque monkeys (Macaca nemestrina) were reared from birth to 2 months of age in special cages that allowed the separation of tactual and visual experience. When assessed on a battery of measures at the end of the 2-month period, animals reared without the opportunity to integrate information across the two sensory modalities performed at chance levels on a paired-comparison measure of tactual-visual transfer and performed worse than controls in a visually guided reaching task.

Beta-endorphin levels in longtailed and pigtailed macaques vary by abnormal behavior rating and sex.

Frequent or severe abnormal behavior may be associated with the release of endorphins that positively reinforce the behavior with an opiate euphoria or analgesia. One line of research exploring this association involves the superhormone, proopiomelanocortin (POMC). The products of POMC appear to be dysregulated in some human subjects who exhibit self-injurious behavior (SIB).

Statistical methods for describing developmental milestones with censored data: effects of birth weight status and sex in neonatal pigtailed macaques.

Neurobehavioral tests are used to assess early neonatal behavioral functioning and detect effects of prenatal and perinatal events. However, common measurement and data collection methods create specific data features requiring thoughtful statistical analysis. Assessment response measurements are often ordinal scaled, not interval scaled; the magnitude of the physical response may not directly correlate with the underlying state of developmental maturity; and a subject's assessment record may be censored.

Neonatal behavior and infant cognitive development in rhesus macaques produced by assisted reproductive technologies.

Assisted reproductive technologies (ART) used in fertility clinics include in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), followed by embryo transfer into the biological or a surrogate mother. Over 1,000,000 liveborn offspring--an estimated 1 in 150 United States newborns--have been produced worldwide by ART since 1978. IVF appears to produce healthy children in singleton pregnancies, though concerns remain regarding preterm deliveries, multiple pregnancies, as well as the longer-term consequences of all ART procedures.

Trisomy 16 in a pigtailed macaque (M. nemestrina) with multiple anomalies and developmental delays.

A female pigtailed macaque (Macaca nemestrina) with unusual physical characteristics, deficits in learning and cognitive tasks, abnormal social behavior, and abnormal reflexes and motor control was followed from birth until 3 years of age and found to have trisomy 16, which is homologous to trisomy 13 in humans. The animal described here showed similar features to cases of trisomy 16 and 18 (human trisomy 13 and 18, respectively) reported previously in nonhuman primates. However, both significant differences and similarities were found when compared with the homologous human trisomy.

Physical aspects of yttrium-90 microsphere therapy for nonresectable hepatic tumors.

Administration of yttrium-90 microspheres via the hepatic artery is an attractive approach to selectively deliver therapeutic doses of radiation to liver malignancies. This procedure allows delivering radiation absorbed doses in excess of 100 Gy to the tumors without significant liver toxicity. The microsphere therapy involves different specialties including medical oncology, radiation oncology, nuclear medicine, interventional radiology, medical physics, and radiation safety.

Markovian models for the developmental study of social behavior.

Behavioral development involves changes in the probabilities of both social and nonsocial activities and the sequential pattern of activities over time. A number of methods have been offered for the analysis of these patterns of behavioral sequences. However, there continue to be problematic issues, including the analysis of nonstationary data; accommodation of changes in patterns within an observation period, or over repeated observations or age; and identification of differences in pattern changes between individuals or groups, and the factors responsible for these differences.

Survival, growth, health, and reproduction following nursery rearing compared with mother rearing in pigtailed monkeys (Macaca nemestrina).

Nursery-reared primates do not experience psychological "maternal bonding" or immunological benefits of breast milk, so they are expected to be inferior to mother-raised monkeys in growth, health, survival, reproduction, and maternal abilities. Studies of nursery-reared monkeys support aspects of this prediction for infants deprived of social contact or raised in pairs. We present colony record data on 1,187 mother and 506 nursery-raised monkeys, 2-10 yr of age, living in mixed groups.

Characteristics of early rhythmic behaviors in children at risk for developmental disorders.

Objective: Abnormal stereotyped behaviors are a significant problem for many individuals with mental retardation or mental illness. To increase understanding of the development of abnormal stereotyped behaviors, the authors investigated the early rhythmic behaviors of children at increased risk for developmental delays.

Method: Rhythmic behaviors in 13-month-old children born prematurely and in children born at term were coded from laboratory videotapes of structured interaction segments.

Weaning, body weight, and postpartum amenorrhea duration in pigtailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina).

Early permanent infant separation or weaning decreases the time interval between pregnancies and interbirth intervals for many female primates. At least part of the interpregnancy interval consists of postpartum amenorrhea, a period of non-menstruation lasting from the time of birth until the female begins to ovulate. This study investigated the effects of weaning age and dam's body weight on the duration of the interval between pregnancies, the duration of postpartum amenorrhea, and the number of cycles to conception in a year-round breeder.

Demographic analysis of the washington regional primate research center pigtailed macaque colony, 1967-1996.

This work presents the results of a demographic analysis of 30 years of breeding records from the University of Washington's recently closed Primate Field Station at Medical Lake, Washington. Summaries of population growth, age-specific fertility and mortality rates, first-year survival, and seasonality of reproduction are presented, as well as an analysis of survival by decade. In addition, we present data on interbirth intervals in this population.

Social housing and pregnancy outcome in captive pigtailed macaques.

We present a retrospective analysis of 30 years of breeding records from a colony of pigtailed macaques at the University of Washington's Regional Primate Research Center, specifically examining the effects on pregnancy outcome of sire presence, presence of other pregnant females, group stability, overall group size, and dam age and parity. Data on 2,040 pregnancies (1,890 live births) of socially housed pigtailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina) were obtained from the Washington Regional Primate Research Center's animal colony records from 1967 to 1996. Our results suggest that the presence of the sire and other pregnant females, fewer moves, and lower parity increases the probability of a viable birth.

Behavioral measurement of temperament in male nursery-raised infant macaques and baboons.

We define temperament as an individual's set of characteristic behavioral responses to novel or challenging stimuli. This study adapted a temperament scale used with rhesus macaques by Schneider and colleagues [American Journal of Primatology 25:137-155, 1991] for use with male pigtailed macaque (Macaca nemestrina, n = 7), longtailed macaque (M. fascicularis, n = 3), and baboon infants (Papio cynocephalus anubis, n = 4).