# Viral Testing Core-Maintenance of the SPF Breeding Colonies at Yerkes National Primate Research Center

> **NIH NIH U42** · EMORY UNIVERSITY · 2023 · $365,897

## Abstract

The primary purpose of the Yerkes Viral Testing Core is to provide accurate, rapid, and cost-effective
serological and molecular viral diagnostic testing in support of the Specific Pathogen Free (SPF) colony at the
Yerkes National Primate Research Center. The Core employs a pipeline of diagnostic screens and tests which
provide definitive diagnoses for the presence of infection by the four viruses that constitute the standard panel
of viruses that are screened for by the NIH Office of Research Infrastructure Programs (ORIP)-supported SPF
macaque colonies: Simian Immunodeficiency Virus (SIV), Simian T Lymphotropic Virus (STLV), Simian type D
retroviruses (SRV), and Macacine herpesvirus 1 (B-virus). Testing for these viruses in the Yerkes SPF colony
has been ongoing for 16 years, and the SPF colony has been free of any of these 4 NHP viruses since 2013.
 Over the past funding period, the Core has increased its self-sufficiency and reduced turnover time in
reporting virological results critical for making colony management and animal assignment decisions by
establishing an in-house quantitative real-time PCR for the detection of Simian type D retrovirus (SRV) in
rhesus macaques. Previously, run on a fee-for-service basis at the California National Primate Research
Center, an in-house assay has significantly reduced both the cost and the turnaround time for the confirmation
of SRV infection in both SPF and non-SPF rhesus macaques at Yerkes. Additionally, the Viral Testing Core
has undergone a review of its Multiple Fluorescent Immunoassay (MFIA) thresholds for positivity. The Core
has also implement SARS-CoV-2 screening to ensure the health of the rhesus macaques and the animal
resources staff as well as to prevent any confounding complications that SARS-CoV-2 infection may have for
AIDS research.
 During the next funding period, the Viral Testing Core will continue to provide state-of-the-art viral
diagnostic services for the SPF breeding colony at Yerkes. Specifically, the Core will continue to develop virus
specific beads to increase the specificity of its MFIA screen. These beads will further enhance the efficiency of
its diagnostic pipeline. The Core will also add MFIA beads for non-SPF pathogens such as adeno-associated
viruses, several flaviviruses, and Trypansoma cruzi. Finally, the Core will continue to screen the SPF colony for
SARS-CoV-2 through both targeted swabbing of sick animals as well as fecal screening.
 The implementation of these tests will be critical (1) for the Yerkes Virology Core to provide cost effective,
efficient, and rapid SPF viral testing solutions, (2) for the ability of colony managers to make assignment and
husbandry decisions, and, most importantly, (3) for the success of AIDS researchers using nonhuman primates
at Yerkes.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10559717
- **Project number:** 5U42OD011023-20
- **Recipient organization:** EMORY UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Thomas Howerton Vanderford
- **Activity code:** U42 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $365,897
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2002-09-30 → 2026-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10559717

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10559717, Viral Testing Core-Maintenance of the SPF Breeding Colonies at Yerkes National Primate Research Center (5U42OD011023-20). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10559717. Licensed CC0.

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