# Pan Coronavirus Genomic Surveillance of a Large NHP Colony

> **NIH NIH R03** · TULANE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA · 2024 · $87,500

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
The novel coronavirus that emerged in late 2019, termed SARS-CoV-2, quickly spread throughout the world
and has killed millions. A critical aspect of this pandemic that remains understudied is the impact of immunity to
seasonal coronaviruses on COVID-19 disease. Several lines of evidence suggest there is an impact but the
nature of that impact remains unclear. We have preliminary data confirming our colony of 5,000 rhesus
macaques harbors a large fraction of animals with preexisting immunity to coronaviruses of unknown origin.
This immunity may be important in the use of these animals for COVID-19 and other coronavirus disease. We
hypothesize that our colony seasonally circulates human seasonal coronaviruses but we need to identify the
actual viruses circulating. Here, we will use multiple approaches to assess the frequency of these infections
and to identify the actual viruses. In Aim 1, we will use pan-coronavirus primers to quantify coronavirus
infections in our colony. We will sample both nasal and rectal sites as coronaviruses are known to be shed
from both. In Aim 2, we will use next generation sequencing to identify the viruses circulating. We will apply
phylogenetic approaches to characterize the diversity of the virus or viruses in our colony. These data will have
important implications for the use of macaques for coronavirus infections in general and may shed light on the
coronavirus family.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10739824
- **Project number:** 5R03AI174152-02
- **Recipient organization:** TULANE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
- **Principal Investigator:** Nicholas James Maness
- **Activity code:** R03 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $87,500
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-11-14 → 2025-10-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10739824

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10739824, Pan Coronavirus Genomic Surveillance of a Large NHP Colony (5R03AI174152-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10739824. Licensed CC0.

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