The race for a coronavirus vaccine to help end the pandemic has consumed the scientific community and created an escalating demand for an essential resource: monkeys. Before drug companies call on human volunteers, monkeys are used in preclinical trials to test a vaccine’s safety and effectiveness. But with more than 100 vaccines in development around the world, there aren’t enough monkeys to go around.“There is a shortage,” said Dr. Skip Bohm, associate director and chief veterinary medical officer of the Tulane National Primate Research Center. Like other aspects of society, the pandemic has underscored an already existing problem. Nonhuman primate research centers have been strained in recent years because of restrictions on imported monkeys from countries like China and India, and a lack of funding to support domestic breeding.“We’ve always been in a state where we were always very close to the level of production to meeting the demand for research, and that has been the status for several years,” Bohm said. “When the COVID pandemic came about, that just pressed us even further.”While animal rights advocates condemn using primates in experiments, researchers say it’s essential for development of medical science. The National Primate Research Centers try to use the smallest number of animals necessary for a valid scientific result, according to the centers’ website. Unfortunately, it’s not currently possible to completely replace animal models with computer simulations or cell cultures.“We all hope there’s a day we don’t have to use animals in research but right now … not all humans are going to submit for an examination where they get regular x-rays, regular CT analysis or blood analysis,” Bohm said. Rhesus monkeys, or Rhesus Macaques, are the most commonly used monkeys for preclinical trials because they share about 93% of their genes with humans, according to the National Primate Research Centers. Jay Rappaport, director and chief academic officer of Tulane’s National Primate Research Center, says the species has been used in research for years, so scientists are most familiar with how its immune system combats pathogens, especially coronaviruses.“Their immune systems and immune responses are very similar to what you see in humans and they can give you a very good idea of safety and efficacy in vaccines,” he said. The Washington National Primate Research Center breeds pig-tailed macaques, which could play an important role in second generation vaccines, according to Deborah Fuller, the center’s division chief of infectious disease and translational medicine. This species of monkey more resembles humans when it comes to pregnancy and underlying health conditions. According to a 2018 analysis by the National Institutes of Health, the national primate centers’ projected demand for monkeys would increase by 20% to 50%. Most centers were not equipped to accommodate that kind of increase – then the pandemic hit.
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