Establishment of specific pathogen-free macaque colonies in Tsukuba Primate Research Center of Japan for AIDS research.

Cynomolgus monkeys have been maintained in indoor facilities as closed colony monkeys in Tsukuba Primate Research Center in Japan since 1978. Several microorganisms, including bacteria, parasites and viruses, were eliminated from the cynomolgus monkeys in this colony of TPRC. Various kinds of viruses (B virus, measles virus, simian varicella virus, simian immunodeficiency virus, simian T cell leukemia virus, simian D type retrovirus, simian cytomegalovirus, simian Epstein-Barr virus, and simian foamy virus), bacteria (Shigella, Salmonella and Mycobacteria spp.) and intestinal helminth were chosen as target microorganisms to establish a specific pathogen-free (SPF) colony. Except for a few pathogens (simian D type retrovirus, simian Epstein-Barr virus, and simian foamy virus), selected pathogens were completely eliminated from all monkeys in TPRC. In this review, the history of establishment of SPF cynomolgus monkey colonies in Japan is described. Copyright (c) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.