Rhesus macaques are able to perceive their own heartbeats, according to a new study from the California National Primate Research Center at the University of California, Davis, and Royal Holloway, University of London. The research creates a first-of-its-kind animal model of interoception. 

Interoception refers to the ability to sense the internal state of one’s body, such as observing when your heart races or breathing quickens. The findings provide an important model for future psychiatric and neuropsychiatric research as dysfunctions in interoception are associated with anxiety, depression, and Alzheimer's disease. 

Infant monkeys conceived while their mothers were naturally exposed to wildfire smoke show behavioral changes compared to animals conceived days later, according to a new study from researchers at the California National Primate Research Center at the University of California, Davis. The work is published April 1 in Nature Communications.

“The findings suggest that some component of wildfire smoke can act as a teratogen, affecting fetal development.”

UC Davis has prevailed in a civil lawsuit brought by activists under the California Public Records Act. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, had filed the suit in January 2019, seeking access to unpublished research data, in the form of video recordings, from work by two researchers at the California National Primate Research Center. 

The Superior Court of California, County of Yolo, ruled that releasing the material did not serve the public interest and would undermine academic freedom and the scientific process while increasing the risk that researchers could face physical harm and harassment from activists.

“We’re pleased with the court’s decision enabling UC Davis researchers to pursue their work, which ultimately benefits our community,” said Prasant Mohapatra, vice chancellor for research at UC Davis. The Office of Research oversees animal care programs on campus.

A new study from Tulane University has shown the effect of COVID-19 on the brain and central nervous system, based on a primate model. They found severe brain inflammation and injury consistent with reduced blood flow or oxygen to the brain, including neuron damage and death. 

Researchers hope that this and future studies that investigate how SARS-CoV-2 affects the brain will contribute to the understanding and treatment of patients suffering from the neurological consequences of COVID-19 and Long COVID.

As SARS-CoV-2 has continued to evolve and outsmart existing treatments, scientists have not let up looking for ever-more effective tools to keep people safe and successfully recover from COVID-19, and to prepare for future outbreaks.

A long-time partnership between Texas Biomedical Research Institute Professor Luis Martinez-Sobrido, and University of Alabama at Birmingham Associate Professor James Kobie and Professor Mark Walter, has resulted in the discovery of a promising treatment – one that the virus cannot so easily escape.