Press Releases

Connections Matter: Social Relationships and Lifespan Health in a Monkey Model

Applying a new approach to rhesus macaque groups to realistically model individual, family, and group health across the lifespan in human populations. Humans live in societies full of rich and complex relationships that influence our physical and mental health and well-being. In both human and nonhuman primates, social life, and its interaction [...]

Monkey Model for Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Identified at UC Davis Primate Center

Monkeys and humans are similarly affected by deadly heart disease A collaboration between a team of pathologists from the California National Primate Research Center (CNPRC) and a cardiologist from the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine has resulted in the identification of an HCM (Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy) disease model naturally occurring [...]

Understanding Zika Virus with Nonhuman Primates

Developing a strategy to prevent and treat Zika virus Research is beginning next week at the California National Primate Research Center (CNPRC) at UC Davis to understand Zika virus. Leading the efforts are Drs. Koen Van Rompay, Eliza Bliss-Moreau, Paul Luciw and John H. Morrison at the CNPRC, and Dr. [...]

Immune responses to loneliness similar in monkeys and people

Can loneliness make you sick? Loneliness is more than just a socio-emotional condition; it can be a significant cause of poor health, and is of special concern in the elderly. Also known as perceived social isolation, loneliness reflects a discrepancy between desired and actual social relationships, and has been [...]

Prozac, oxytocin and autism

Prozac (fluoxetine), a commonly prescribed drug for anxiety and depression, is used during pregnancy by some women. But several studies are showing that prenatal exposure to the drug may increase the risk of having a child with autism. Prozac, Zoloft (sertraline) and Paxil (paroxetine) are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) [...]

Mother-to-infant transmission of high-risk infection: new monkey model

Dr. Peter Barry’s innovative research program using the rhesus monkey as a model of CMV infection leads to a successful study in placental transmission Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is highly prevalent in humans, infecting from 50-100% of adults around the world. The virus is often contracted through contact with saliva or [...]

Director Morrison: A Leader in Outreach

“There is no question that this is an exciting time for neuroscience. These major projects around the globe give us great opportunities to let the public know about why our work is important.” John Morrison, PhD, is the director of the California National Primate Research Center at the University of [...]

The Challenge of Controlling HIV

A new understanding of how some infants may resist HIV disease When a person is infected with a virus their immune system is normally activated to respond to and control the infection. However, when a person is persistently infected with HIV, the chronic activation and overstimulation of the immune system [...]

Gene therapy treatment shows benefits to Alzheimer’s patients

Gene therapy treatment developed at the CNPRC shows benefits to brain cells for Alzheimer’s patients Reporting on the first-of-its-kind human clinical trials designed to test the potential benefits of nerve growth factor gene therapy for Alzheimer’s patients, Mark Tuszynski, MD, PhD, CNPRC affiliate scientist, has found that an experimental gene [...]

Aging and Synaptic Health

CNPRC Incoming Director John Morrison is expanding our understanding of how estrogen affects cognitive functioning and synaptic health The good, the bad and the ugly. Estrogen; such a familiar hormone, and such a large influence on everyone’s health, female or male, young or old. With an abundance of estrogen during women’s reproductive [...]

Women, Lung Health, and Climate Change

CNPRC research is working to understand the complex issues that affect the lung health of human populations worldwide. There is growing evidence that a number of pulmonary diseases affect women differently, and with a greater degree of severity, than men. There is an urgent need to better understand the potential [...]

MERIT Program Announced at CNPRC

Igniting Novel Research with Current and New Animal Models Drug discovery and innovative therapeutic approaches in the era of personalized medicine requires the use of animal models that closely recapitulate human disease. To address these challenges, the California National Primate Research Center (CNPRC) at UC Davis is initiating the MERIT [...]

Understanding Pre-term Labor for Diagnostics and Therapeutics

Research conducted at the CNPRC on chorioamnionitis-induced preterm labor in women has been recommended by Faculty of 1000, in recognition of the research’s high impact in its field. Faculty of 1000 is a collaboration of over 5,000 world-wide faculty experts who identify important articles in biology and medical research publications. [...]

CNPRC Study Leads to Meningococcal Vaccine Improvements

On February 12, 2015, CNPRC Affiliate Scientists Drs. Koen Van Rompay, Peter Beernink, and Dan Granoff announced important findings from a pilot project study conducted at the CNPRC on improving the effectiveness of the meningococcal vaccine for prevention of sepsis and meningitis caused by meningococci group B, a rare, and sometimes [...]

CNPRC Respiratory Research Supports Lower Ozone Levels

On February 2, 2015, at the invitation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) seeking comments on the optimal level of ozone for public health, Kent Pinkerton, PhD, Core Scientist in the CNPRC Respiratory Diseases Unit and for the Inhalation Exposure Core, presented the scientific basis for requesting that national ozone [...]

2017-10-03T18:21:52-07:00February 26th, 2015|Tags: , , , , , , |

Evaluating Measles Vaccine Safety

High rates of non-vaccinated children throughout the US have reached critical numbers of vulnerable individuals, resulting in perfect conditions for a wildfire storm of measles infections, an easily preventable yet highly contagious disease. More than 120 confirmed cases of measles have been reported in 17 states and the District of [...]

2017-08-30T23:07:09-07:00February 18th, 2015|Tags: , , , , , |

Binge drinking: implications for human health

Think before you drink.
 "Dry January" can be a struggle for some after the holidays, but new research has revealed that you may be benefiting your own and future offspring’s health. A new study by CNPRC Core Scientist Catherine VandeVoort, PhD, (Fetility and Sterility) identified some of the potential effects of long-term [...]

2017-08-30T23:07:09-07:00January 13th, 2015|Tags: , , , , |

Predicting embryo success with in vitro fertilization

According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, just 7.5 percent of all artificially fertilized embryos will go on to become live-born children. With such a low success rate, failed in vitro fertilization (IVF) is a frustrating situation for couples and their doctors. Stuart Meyers, D.V.M., Ph.D., CNPRC Affiliate Scientist [...]

Vaccine against HCMV, the “birth defect virus”, produces a strong immune response

An exciting new vaccine strategy was recently announced by Director Peter Barry and colleagues at City of Hope that has the potential to prevent a viral infection that causes 5,000 babies yearly to be born with congenital neurological deficits. Human cytomegalovirus, or HCMV, is a common virus, infecting from 50-100% [...]

Mother’s immunity linked to brain inflammation

Monkeys exposed in utero to their mother’s immune response to a mock infection show inflammation in their brains four years later, similar to which can be associated with schizophrenia and autism. Melissa Bauman presented new findings in her research in brain inflammation in monkeys at the 2014 Society for Neuroscience annual meeting [...]

2017-10-03T18:20:33-07:00November 25th, 2014|Tags: , , , , , |
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