The Emory National Primate Research Center (formerly known as Yerkes National Primate Research Center) located in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, owned by

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

, is a center of biomedical and behavioral research, is dedicated to improving human and animal health, and is the oldest of seven

National Primate Research Center National Primate Research Centers are a network of seven research programs in the United States funded by the National Institutes of Health to conduct biomedical research on primates. Each center is affiliated with a university or other host institu ...

s partially funded by the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the late ...

. It is known for its nationally and internationally recognized biomedical and behavioral studies with nonhuman primates by Emory University. Its Main Station contains most of the center's biomedical research laboratories. The center also includes the Living Links Center and the Field Station near

Lawrenceville, Georgia Lawrenceville is a city in and the county seat of Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. It is a suburb of Atlanta, located approximately northeast of downtown. As of the 2020 census, the population of Lawrenceville was 30,629. In 2019, the ...

History

The center was established in 1930 by

Robert Yerkes Robert Mearns Yerkes (; May 26, 1876 – February 3, 1956) was an American psychologist, ethologist, eugenicist and primatologist best known for his work in intelligence testing and in the field of comparative psychology. Yerkes was a pioneer ...

, in

Orange Park, Florida Orange Park is a town in Clay County, Florida, United States. It is a suburb of Jacksonville, in neighboring Duval County. The population was 8,412 at the 2010 census. The name "Orange Park" is additionally applied to a wider area of northern ...

, associated then with

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

. Yerkes was a pioneering primatologist who specialized in

comparative psychology Comparative psychology refers to the scientific study of the behavior and mental processes of non-human animals, especially as these relate to the phylogenetic history, adaptive significance, and development of behavior. Research in this area addr ...

. In 1965, it relocated to its location on the campus of Emory University. In April 2022, Emory University removed Yerkes’ name from the center, after a review by Emory's Committee on Naming Honors recommended that the name be changed due to Yerkes' past support for

eugenics Eugenics ( ; ) is a fringe set of beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of a human population. Historically, eugenicists have attempted to alter human gene pools by excluding people and groups judged to be inferior or ...

. The Yerkes National Primate Research Center will be known as the Emory National Primate Research Center, effective June 1, 2022.

Satellite locations

The Field Station is a part of the Emory National Primate Research Center, houses 3,400 animals, specializes in behavioral studies of primate social groups, and is located northeast of Atlanta on of wooded land. The Living Links Center is a part of the Emory National Primate Research Center and is run by primatologist

Frans De Waal Franciscus Bernardus Maria "Frans" de Waal (born October 29, 1948) is a Dutch primatologist and ethologist. He is the Charles Howard Candler Professor of Primate Behavior in the Department of Psychology at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, ...

. Located at the center's Main Station on the Emory campus, work is also carried out at the Field Station.

Research

Multidisciplinary Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several other fields like sociology, anthropology, psychology, ec ...

medical research Medical research (or biomedical research), also known as experimental medicine, encompasses a wide array of research, extending from "basic research" (also called ''bench science'' or ''bench research''), – involving fundamental scientif ...

at the research center is primarily aimed at development of

medical treatments Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practic ...

and

vaccines A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity The adaptive immune system, also known as the acquired immune system, is a subsystem of the immune system that is composed of specialized, systemic cells and pro ...

. Research programs include

cognitive development Cognitive development is a field of study in neuroscience and psychology focusing on a child's development in terms of information processing, conceptual resources, perceptual skill, language learning, and other aspects of the developed adult bra ...

and decline, childhood

visual The visual system comprises the sensory organ (the eye) and parts of the central nervous system (the retina containing photoreceptor cells, the optic nerve, the optic tract and the visual cortex) which gives organisms the sense of sight (the ...

defects,

organ transplant Organ transplantation is a medical procedure in which an organ is removed from one body and placed in the body of a recipient, to replace a damaged or missing organ. The donor and recipient may be at the same location, or organs may be transpo ...

ation, the

behavior Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English) is the range of actions and mannerisms made by individuals, organisms, systems or artificial entities in some environment. These systems can include other systems or organisms as wel ...

al effects of

hormone A hormone (from the Greek participle , "setting in motion") is a class of signaling molecules in multicellular organisms that are sent to distant organs by complex biological processes to regulate physiology and behavior. Hormones are required ...

replacement therapy and

social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives from ...

s of primates. Researchers also are leading programs to better understand the aging process, pioneer

procedures and provide safer drugs to organ transplant recipients, determine the behavioral effects of

hormone replacement therapy Hormone replacement therapy (HRT), also known as menopausal hormone therapy or postmenopausal hormone therapy, is a form of hormone therapy used to treat symptoms associated with female menopause. These symptoms can include hot flashes, vaginal ...

, prevent early onset

vision disorders A vision disorder is an impairment of the sense of vision. Vision disorder is not the same as an eye disease. Although many vision disorders do have their immediate cause in the eye, there are many other causes that may occur at other locations in ...

and shed light on human behavioral evolution. Researchers have had success creating transgenic rhesus macaque monkeys with

Huntington's disease Huntington's disease (HD), also known as Huntington's chorea, is a neurodegenerative disease that is mostly inherited. The earliest symptoms are often subtle problems with mood or mental abilities. A general lack of coordination and an unst ...

and hope to breed a second generation of macaques with the genetic disorder.

Controversy and incidents

The center has long been the target of protest for its treatment of animals. This was especially true after the release of

Frederick Wiseman Frederick Wiseman (born January 1, 1930) is an American filmmaker, documentarian, and theater director. His work is "devoted primarily to exploring American institutions". He has been called "one of the most important and original filmmakers worki ...

's 1974 film ''Primate'', which was shot at the research center and depicted primates undergoing surgical procedures, as well as a transcardial

perfusion Perfusion is the passage of fluid through the circulatory system or lymphatic system to an organ or a tissue, usually referring to the delivery of blood to a capillary bed in tissue. Perfusion is measured as the rate at which blood is deliver ...

and brain extraction. The center's proposal to do AIDS-related research on endangered

sooty mangabey The sooty mangabey (''Cercocebus atys'') is an Old World monkey found in forests from Senegal in a margin along the coast down to the Ivory Coast. Habitat and ecology The sooty mangabey is native to tropical West Africa, being found in Guinea, G ...

monkeys drew opposition from numerous primatologists, including

Jane Goodall Dame Jane Morris Goodall (; born Valerie Jane Morris-Goodall on 3 April 1934), formerly Baroness Jane van Lawick-Goodall, is an English primatologist and anthropologist. Seen as the world's foremost expert on chimpanzees, Goodall is best know ...

. Emory National Primate Research Center research assistant Elizabeth Griffin became the first work-related death in the center's history on December 10, 1997, due to

herpes B virus B-virus (''Macacine alphaherpesvirus 1''; McHV-1; formerly ''Macacine herpesvirus 1'', ''Cercopithecine herpesvirus 1'', CHV-1), ''Herpesvirus simiae'', or ''Herpes virus B'' is the ''Simplexvirus'' infecting macaque monkeys. B virus is very sim ...

. Griffin apparently became infected after a fluid exposure to the eye which occurred while helping to move a caged

rhesus macaque The rhesus macaque (''Macaca mulatta''), colloquially rhesus monkey, is a species of Old World monkey. There are between six and nine recognised subspecies that are split between two groups, the Chinese-derived and the Indian-derived. Generally b ...

at the Field Station. The

Occupational Safety and Health Administration The Occupational Safety and Health Administration'' (OSHA ) is a large regulatory agency of the United States Department of Labor that originally had federal visitorial powers to inspect and examine workplaces. Congress established the agenc ...

ultimately fined the center $105,300 in 1998 after a 19-week investigation. The event led to reforms in safety protocols for handling research primates. On June 15, 2011, at the Field Station, personnel determined that ''Ep13'', a non-infected female rhesus macaque, was missing. On August 16, 2011, the search for ''Ep13'' ended. In December 2014, a macaque was found dead in an enclosure adjacent to the one in which she was supposed to be housed. Staff at the facility failed to notice that the macaque was not in the correct enclosure. In January 2015, a macaque was euthanized after being in distress for at least two weeks. A necropsy revealed that the macaque was in distress because staff had applied a rubber band to the animal during application of an identification tattoo, but had failed to remove the rubber band. In December 2015, a male macaque was euthanized after being sick from surgery a week prior. A necropsy revealed that the macaque was sick as a result of a piece of gauze being left in his abdomen during surgery, which causing adhesions and intestinal obstruction. In July 2017, a primate was mistakenly euthanized after a technician mistakenly entered the wrong code into the euthanization schedule. In August 2017, a primate had to be given surgery after a gauze sponge was left in its abdomen from a different surgery a week prior. In August 2021, a female macaque died after her leg got caught in a gap in the wall of her housing facility. An investigation determined that the housing facility was not constructed properly. In October 2021, the USDA reported that the center had not properly cleaned food waste from several macaque housing enclosures. It was reported that food waste had not been cleaned up for three to four weeks. In some cases, the accumulation of food waste prevented drainage of rainwater, attracted flies, and started to accumulate mold.

Directors

Notes

External links

Emory.edu
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center (official homepage) :

- 'The Capuchin Library'

- 'World Laboratory Animal Liberation Week (around April 24)...a national week of protests, media events, etc. at laboratories to stop testing and research on animals'
IDAusa.org (pdf)
- 'Experiments Conducted on

Macaque The macaques () constitute a genus (''Macaca'') of gregarious Old World monkeys of the subfamily Cercopithecinae. The 23 species of macaques inhabit ranges throughout Asia, North Africa, and (in one instance) Gibraltar. Macaques are principally ...

Monkeys: Psychological Torment, Behavioral Research, Effects of Nonmaternal restraint on vocalizations of infant

rhesus monkey The rhesus macaque (''Macaca mulatta''), colloquially rhesus monkey, is a species of Old World monkey. There are between six and nine recognised subspecies that are split between two groups, the Chinese-derived and the Indian-derived. Generally b ...

s (Macaca Mulata)', T. Jovanovich, H. Gouzoues,

In Defence of Animals '' In Defence of Animals: The Second Wave '' is a 2005 book edited by the philosopher Peter Singer. It contains chapters by Gaverick Matheny, Richard Ryder, Paola Cavalieri, Paul Waldau Paul may refer to: * Paul (given name), a given name (inc ...

Report: Yerkes Institute
PrimateFreedom.com
- 'Life in a Laboratory',

Primate Freedom Project ] The Primate Freedom Project is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit grassroots animal rights organization based in Atlanta, Georgia. It is dedicated to ending the use of nonhuman primates in biomedical and harmful behavioral experimentation. The project i ...

:
EmoryLies.com
- 'Supporting Excellence in Research', Primate Freedom Project {{Authority control Emory University Medical research institutes in the United States Scientific organizations established in 1930 Primate research centers Research institutes in Georgia (state) 1930 establishments in Florida Medical and health organizations based in Florida