This is a competing renewal requesting support for the pathogen free, pedigreed and genomically characterized Vervet Research Colony (VRC). For the past five years the VRC has responded vigorously to an increased demand for VRC resources, including the distribution of 404 animals to the national research community and more than 100 in just the prior year. Future demand is projected to be strong owing to increased use of vervets for vaccine development, cardiometabolic disorders, and dementia studies, and because of substantial difficulties surrounding the international transportation of monkeys for research, including those from the Caribbean. The genomic sequencing of all individuals in the VRC and the resulting genomic resources now provides investigators the opportunity to apply modern systems biology to the study of disease pathobiology and to the development of new therapies and interventions for the chronic, degenerative, and infectious disorders posing the greatest risks to public health. The development of the genomic resource and updating of the pedigree continues to involve a strong collaboration with investigators from UCLA, who have partnered with Wake Forest scientists for more than a decade. As a national, multicategorical research resource, the VRC provides access to well-characterized monkeys for research on- or off site, including investigations focused on the nutritional context. The three specific aims for the VRC for the next grant period are: 1) to ensure both a minimum of 85 pathogen-free, genomically characterized vervets to the national biomedical community and the accompanying data and tissue repositories required to facilitate the systematic study of human disease and therapies; 2) to enhance the VRC's translational value by developing data and tissue repositories from controlled, repeated assessments while consuming a `Western' vs. usual laboratory chow diet, thereby providing a relevant nutritional context for understanding chronic disease risk and facilitating `omic' approaches to the study of animals across the lifespan; and 3) to continue providing the VRC as a platform for training veterinarians and other professionals in biomedical research, husbandry, clinical care, and the management of animal resources. It is important to note that the data and tissue repositories are enriched by regular collection and assay of blood, muscle, fat, and CSF; other collections, including liver, bone, and multimodal imaging (PET, MRI, CT, DXA, MEG) are available on request. To encourage maximum use of the resource and associated repositories, the VRC investigators engage in a program of scientific outreach that includes an annual national symposium, a pilot study program, a website, and a regular newsletter. The funds supporting scientific outreach are provided entirely by the Wake Forest School of Medicine. The VRC also engages in community outreach, focused largely on students in grades 4 - 12 and their teachers.
The vervet is a model of choice for cardiometabolic studies, dementia, vaccine development, aging across the lifespan, neurogenetic investigations, the development of cell-lines, and the investigation of simian immunodeficiency virus. Demand for the vervet has increased substantially over the past five years, as indicated by colony use and sales. Finally, new genomic characterization and tissue and data repositories and collections make the vervet an ideal subject for modern systems biology.
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