News Archives - Washington National Primate Research Center

New Leader for Global Programs Named

Central Oregon Community College photo Dr Novak speaks with a student. — Photo Courtesy: Central Oregon Community College

Washington National Primate Research Center Director, Dr. Deborah Fuller today welcomed Dr. Matthew Novak as the new Associate Director of Global Conservation, Education and Outreach. He will be replacing Dr. Randall Kyes, who is retiring from the post at the end of this year.

Dr. Novak is currently a professor of psychology at Central Oregon Community College (COCC). His connections with WaNPRC and the University of Washington go back to the 1990s when he was a student. He was one of the first two American students to participate in Kyes’ Indonesian Field Study Program. He has since returned several times as a guest instructor.

“Matthew will be able to step into the role with a deep appreciation for the strong foundation of global outreach and education in nonhuman primates that Dr. Kyes established,” said Director Fuller. “He has an exciting new vision for expanding the Unit to include new outreach domestically, and we are changing the name of the Unit to Global Programs to reflect this vision. We are fortunate to have him join our team and I’m looking forward to seeing where he takes the unit next.”

In addition to his PhD in Developmental Psychology, Novak is the past president of the American Society of Primatologists and has published on primate topics such as the late-life health impacts of early-life adversity, and studied the impacts of environmental changes on primates in Indonesia.

“The conservation, education and outreach efforts performed and organized by Dr. Randy Kyes over the last 3 plus decades is some of the absolute best work in these areas that has ever been done,” Dr. Novak said. “The importance of his bottom-up approach to building long-term relationships to support the work of the center cannot be emphasized enough. Therefore, I am humbled and honored to be chosen as the next person to lead this effort, on behalf of the primate center. Thank you, Randy, for setting the stage for this next chapter! And to those who know him, you are aware I have impossibly large shoes to fill. I hope everyone will join me and the rest of us in the Global Programs Unit, as we work together to continue his great legacy.”

Novak will continue teaching at COCC until wrapping up this semester. He will simultaneously work with Dr. Kyes to onboard until taking on the role full-time in December.

NAM-Specific Study to Map Immune System

The Washington National Primate Research Center has announced its first Ignition award specifically aimed at supporting a New Approach Methodology (NAM) in a study. WaNPRC has long supported a 3Rs approach to reduce, refine and replace animal models, this award specifically names NAMs.

This project will create the first detailed “map” of the immune system in pigtail macaques at WaNPRC. Using cutting-edge technology called single-cell RNA sequencing, researchers will look at thousands of individual immune cells. They’ll catalog what types of immune cells exist, how they function, and how male, female, and fetal macaques may differ. The end result will be a “Pigtail Macaque Immune Reference Atlas.” A resource that can be compared to similar atlases already created for rhesus macaques and humans.

This atlas will be a powerful NAMs resource because it will:

Enable computer-based predictions of how pigtail macaques respond to infections and vaccines.
Reduce animal use by allowing scientists to model immune responses using existing data instead of collecting new samples.
Refine animal studies by identifying when pigtail macaques are the best model, and when other models or computer simulations may be more accurate.

This project will help researchers make better predictions about how diseases and vaccines affect humans, while reducing the number of animals needed in future experiments.

“This study represents an important step forward in combining traditional primate research with modern computational tools that improve both science and animal welfare,” said Dr Adams Waldorf.

The funding opportunity was announced in mid-2025 and also supports collaborative studies between veterinarians and primary investigators. WaNPRC anticipates funding up to four awards per year and applications are accepted on an ongoing basis. Here is the form for applications.

Director Fuller: Viruses Don’t See Borders

Vaccines access is becoming a national checkerboard of availability, with wide gaps between where they’re available and where they’re not.

Among the problems this patchwork creates: Parents say they can’t find a COVID vaccine without driving two hours. They say their doctor’s offices aren’t ordering the vaccine because the CDC isn’t recommending it for children under 18.

But, as WaNPRC Director Deborah Fuller told Healthcare Dive, “Viruses don’t see borders.”

“If you have an outbreak somewhere, it’s a problem for everyone, everywhere,” she said.

That may lead to discrepancies in health outcomes that depend on the politics of your zipcode, not science.

Read more on what health care providers and scientists say that means for our nation’s future.

Proposed Federal Cuts to Animal Testing Spur Scientific Debate

The NIH and FDA efforts to shift away from animal testing, promoting “new approach methodologies” (NAMs) like AI, organoids, and organ-on-a-chip systems are not finding unanimous support in the scientific community. The goal is to improve research efficiency, lower costs, and reduce harm to animals. While some scientists support the move as overdue, others warn that NAMs can’t yet replace animal models in many areas, like cancer and radiation research. Experts are also concerned about the speed of implementation and the risk of compromising scientific rigor. The shift comes amid broader federal cuts to basic science funding, raising doubts about how far these changes can be effectively realized.

You can read the entire article in STAT News here.

“The reason we have made all the progress and have such amazing science that we do today is in large part thanks to the animal models,” Sally Thompson-Iritani, Assistant Vice Provost of animal care at the University of Washington, told STAT.

“The NIH decided to put this name on it, ‘new approach methodologies,’ but they’re not new. We’ve been doing this for decades, constantly working in parallel,” Deborah Fuller, Director of the Washington National Primate Research Center at the University of Washington, told STAT.

Study: Electrical Brain Stimulation Reduces Damage from Stroke

A new study led by researchers at the Washington National Primate Research Center shows that applying electrical stimulation to the brain within an hour of stroke onset may significantly reduce brain damage. The findings, published July 21, 2025, in Nature Communications, advance stroke intervention research and suggest a potential new path for early treatment in humans.

The study was led by Azadeh Yazdan-Shahmorad PhD, and PhD student Jasmine Zhou of the Neural Engineering and Rehabilitation Laboratory at the University of Washington with an assist from Karam Khateeb, another PhD student tin the same lab. They used a nonhuman primate (NHP) model to test whether electrical stimulation in the sensorimotor cortex could reduce the spread of injury after ischemic stroke, the most common type, making up some 70% of strokes. They applied a form of brain stimulation called theta burst stimulation—a rapid, rhythmic pattern designed to influence neural activity—directly adjacent to the damaged area. This intervention was done one hour after the onset of the stroke.

The electrical stimulation showed smaller lesion volumes compared to those that did not. In some cases, the damaged area was reduced by nearly half. The researchers also observed reduced inflammation and cellular stress markers in stimulated brains, suggesting the stimulation helped suppress harmful processes triggered by the stroke.

Previous research into brain stimulation for stroke recovery has mostly focused on chronic treatment, administered long after the stroke occurs. The use of stimulation within hours of stroke onset has remained largely unexplored due to longstanding beliefs that doing so would concerns about further injuring brain tissue. This study is one of the first to demonstrate in primates that early stimulation may instead provide a protective effect.

“The neuroprotective effects of electrical stimulation observed in this study hold promise not only for significantly improving acute stroke management – by reducing functional deficits and enhancing the chances of recovery in stroke survivors – but also for opening new avenues for therapeutic applications in other types of nervous system injury, including spinal cord injury and traumatic brain injury,” Dr Yazdan-Shahmorad said.

The results offer encouraging evidence for possible clinical applications. However, the authors emphasize that more research is needed before this approach can be considered safe or effective in human patients. You can read the study in Nature Communications, published on July 21, 2025.

WaNPRC Research Led to “Game-Changer” HIV Drugs

You can trace a direct line between the recent headline-grabbing FDA approval of HIV prevention and treatment drugs to research at the Washington National Primate Research Center (WaNPRC). And the history of WaNPRC’s involvement in fighting the HIV epidemic goes back years.

While media coverage of Yeztugo, formally known as lenacapavir or Sunlenca, is understandably focused on the successful human trials, it might not have gotten to human trials at all were it not for animal studies, including those done at WaNPRC.

Yeztugo is a promising tool for many patients. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 1.1 million people in the U.S. are living with HIV. Even though fewer people are getting HIV each year — with about 36,300 new cases in 2018 and 31,800 in 2022 — the disease still hits certain groups harder than others. Experts think one big reason HIV is still a problem is because many people who could benefit from medicine that prevents it (called PrEP, or Pre–Exposure Prophylaxis) either don’t know about it, can’t easily get it, or forget to take it every day. So, a twice-a-year shot has the potential to boost the longstanding effort to reduce HIV rates over the coming years. While Yeztugo is for PrEP, Sunlenca is used as a treatment of HIV in combination with other medications. How these drugs got to this point is where WaNPRC researchers and monkeys enter the picture.

In lieu of a cure, the focus has been on using PrEP to halt transmission between people.

In the mid-1990s, Dr Che-Chung Tsai, a WaNPRC affiliate scientist, showed that an experimental drug, called tenofovir, when administered to pigtail macaques just before or after exposure to SIV (a virus very similar to HIV that causes AIDS in nonhuman primates) study completely protected the animals from infection without adverse effects.

This success led Gilead to develop the licensed version of tenofovir (called Truvada) that has been now used for two decades in the US and worldwide to reduce HIV transmission. This success led Gilead to pursue more options. Among those was lenacapavir, now known by the brand name “Yeztugo and Sunlenca.”

Before Yeztugo and Sunlenca could be tested in humans, it had to be first tested in petri dishes to show it could neutralize the virus. Years of work led to optimizing the drug’s ability to neutralize the virus in a dish. But showing a drug works well in a dish is not enough. To determine the feasibility of using this drug in people, essential studies in nonhuman primates were needed to determine the dose of drug needed to block infection in the body, to determine where the drug goes in the body and if it was safe. This is where WaNPRC once again enters the picture. Dr. Tsai’s early work with Truvada showed the value of the pigtail macaque in predicting the success of a treatment for human use and this led to researchers testing this new drug to reach out to WaNPRC to support this research by providing pigtail macaques for their crucial preclinical study prior to advancing this drug to human clinical trials.

“Female pigtail macaques are preferred for studies to develop antivirals and vaccines to prevent vaginal and rectal transmission of HIV due to their close similarity to both males and females. In particular, female pigtail macaques exhibit the closest similarity to the human female menstrual cycle and have played a crucial role for decades in studies of HIV transmission and prevention in women”said WaNPRC Director Deborah Fuller, who lauded the work leading up to this new drug.

But the work doesn’t end there. WaNPRC is continuing to support studies that aim to halt the spread of HIV. Dr. Rodney Ho, a WaNPRC affiliate researcher and professor in pharmaceutical sciences at the University of Washington pigtail macaques at WaNPRC is developing a different long-acting HIV drug combination, intended to provide even longer lasting HIV viral suppression. His innovation recently entered human clinical trials in collaboration with WaNPRC’s Associate Director of Research, Dr. Kristina Adams Waldorf.

He touts his contributions in establishing the methods were used to enable the ability of PrEP to directly improve human health. With antiviral drugs preventing transmission, Ho said, “life expectance greatly increases. There’s no public burden on health care costs and a higher quality of life for patients who can live out their normal lives.”

The story of Yeztugo and Sunlenca is a powerful example of how early-stage research at WaNPRC laid the foundation for medical breakthroughs that can saved millions of lives. The WaNPRC’s contributions underscore the role of nonhuman primates in translating discoveries into real-world solutions. WaNPRC is committed to this mission and will continue to play a key role in developing the next-gen treatments to prevent and treat HIV and to improve the quality of life and health of people.

Infections in Pregnancy May Alter Brain Development

Illustration of Influenza A and Zika side-by-side. — Illustration of Influenza A (left) and Zika

A new study from researchers at the WaNPRC and Seattle Children’s Hospital offers clues about how viral infections during pregnancy might affect a developing baby’s brain — possibly linking early changes to the development of neurological or psychiatric conditions later in life.

Scientists studied the effects of two viruses — influenza A and Zika — on fetal brain development in pregnant pigtail macaques. Their focus was on a vulnerable area of the brain that’s vital for communication between different brain regions and is still developing late into pregnancy.

In some of the fetal brains, researchers found unusual changes in cells called astrocytes — the brain’s support cells. These altered astrocytes were filled with tiny granules and stood out under the microscope. The researchers dubbed these cells “inclusion cells” because of the grainy material packed inside them.

These inclusion cells showed signs of stress and self-digestion. Nearby immune cells in the brain also appeared activated, suggesting the brain was responding to some kind of injury. These changes were more common when the mother had been infected just a few days to up to three weeks. But they weren’t seen with longer or much shorter infection windows — or in brains affected by other types of injuries, like oxygen deprivation.

The viruses also didn’t seem to be infecting the fetal brain directly. Instead, the brain may have been reacting to inflammation or immune signals from the mother’s body — not the virus itself.

These changes didn’t cause visible birth defects, but they may represent subtle, early damage that could affect brain wiring or development. This is important because many conditions like autism, epilepsy, or developmental delay don’t always show obvious signs on brain scans but may be linked to very early injuries.

The study raises questions about whether a mild or unnoticed infection during pregnancy affects a baby’s brain in ways that only show up years later. And could a better understanding of these mild injuries help us prevent or treat neurodevelopmental disorders?

“A healthy brain at birth is the foundation for a child’s ability to develop to its full potential,” said Dr. Adams Waldorf, a Professor at UW Medicine and lead researcher on the study. “If we understand how these kinds of subtle fetal brain injuries begin, we can figure out how to prevent them in the first place.”

More research is needed — especially in humans — to answer those questions. But for now, their findings add to growing evidence that maternal health and immune responses during pregnancy can play a powerful role in shaping brain development long before birth.

You can read the full report in Acta Neuropathologica Communications.

Response Underway Following Groundwater Test Results at Arizona Facility

Routine groundwater monitoring of a well at the Washington National Primate Research

Centers (WaNPRC) located on the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community (SRPMIC)

land recently identified perchlorate levels that reached the designated threshold for

activating the facility’s contingency plan. Perchlorate is a chemical compound that can be

both manufactured and naturally occurring.

The perchlorate levels were detected by the sampling vendor hired by the company

contracted to Nammo Defense Systems (NDS). Nammo is taking the lead to facilitate

environmental cleanup of the site. As part of the remediation responsibilities, regular

groundwater testing results are provided to the WaNPRC and all relevant regulatory

partners. Although no statewide regulatory limit for perchlorate in groundwater exists in

Arizona, the Arizona Department of Health Services has developed a drinking water

health-based guidance level of 11 micrograms per liter (μg/L) for the compound. This

concentration was developed to protect the most sensitive population, children. The most

recent detected levels of 6.6 micrograms per liter (μg/L) does not exceed this level but it

does exceed the action threshold established in coordination with University of

Washington, WaNPRC, and NDS, and this prompted immediate protective measures.

NDS activated the contingency plan to safeguard the health and safety of the research

animals at WaNPRC and began delivering potable water to the facility to minimize

operational impacts while strategic consideration for a long-term water filtration solution

is developed.

NDS also notified and is actively coordinating with regulatory and community partners,

including the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community (SRPMIC), the US

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Arizona Department of Environmental

Quality (ADEQ). WaNPRC is also actively collaborating with these agencies as it follows its

response strategy.

For questions or concerns, please contact: uwnews@uw.edu.

June 18, 2025

WaNPRC’s Global Conservation, Education and Outreach Unit Marks 25 Years of Field Training in Tangkoko 

For over two decades, the annual Field Course in Conservation Biology & Global Health at Tangkoko Nature Reserve, North Sulawesi, Indonesia, has been shaping generations of conservationists. This year, the course marked a significant milestone— its 25th anniversary— reinforcing the importance of long-term collaboration in global conservation efforts. 

Led by Randy Kyes (research professor in psychology and chief of the GCEO unit at UW’s WaNPRC) along with dedicated partners from the Faculty of Animal Science (Fapet) at Sam Ratulangi University (UNSRAT) and the Primate Research Center (PSSP) at IPB University (IPB), this field course has offered hands-on training to local university students and professionals for years, equipping them with the skills to understand and protect biodiversity. Historically, it stands alongside another long-running program in Indonesia— the 30th-anniversary field course on Tinjil Island, Banten, Java, conducted in partnership with PSSP-IPB in 2022. 

Three black macaques grooming in green foliage — Three critically endangered Sulawesi black macaques (Macaca nigra) bonding during ritual grooming in Indonesia’s Tangkoko Nature Reserve

Beyond fieldwork and research, the program has fostered lasting connections with local communities. Since 2001, the annual outreach education program has brought conservation awareness to elementary school children from Batu Putih, a village bordering the reserve. Guided by field course participants, the children learn about Sulawesi black macaques, participate in an art contest promoting conservation, and enjoy a reception to celebrate their efforts. 

group photo of outreach activity participants, teachers and elementary school children wearing red uniforms in Indonesia — Dr Kyes seated with elementary school children from Batu Putih and field course participants at the reception following outreach activities Photo: courtesy RCKyes 2025

The program’s impact extends far beyond its immediate goals. Over time, many of these schoolchildren have returned to participate in the field course as young adults, eager to continue their conservation journey. To date, 30 former outreach students have joined the field course, some pursuing university degrees in conservation, others working with NGOs or leading ecotourism efforts in Tangkoko. 

This initiative thrives because of the dedicated participation and support of our many collaborators notes Randy, including Fapet-UNSRAT, PSSP-IPB, the Washington National Primate Research Center (WaNPRC) and the Center for Global Field Study (CGFS) at the University of Washington (UW), Balai Konservasi Sumber Daya Alam, Department of Forestry (SULUT), Center for Southeast Asia and its Diasporas at UW, One Earth Institute, Selamatkan Yaki, and the community of Batu Putih. “It’s difficult to express how gratifying it is to witness firsthand the growth and success of our field course alumni and outreach participants. Listening to their words of appreciation for the opportunity to have participated in this field training program is the validation of our years of effort,” Kyes shared.

As Randy and his collaborators celebrate this milestone, they’re looking forward to many more years of educating, inspiring, and working together to protect the fragile ecosystems of Indonesia. The WaNPRC’s GCEO outreach and field course alumni are continuing to play key roles in shaping the future of conservation in the region.

Learn more about Kyes, his field work, and the Global Conservation, Education and Outreach unit:

Mapping Safer Roads for Nepalese Wildlife

Every year, in Nepal’s Banke National Park, hundreds of wild animals are killed trying to cross a single stretch of road. This road, just under 60 miles long, cuts through the heart of the park. From April 2015 to March 2024, scientists including WaNPRC’s Randy Kyes, Unit Chief of the Global Conservation Education and Outreach core, closely monitored this road and recorded 488 collisions between vehicles and wildlife. Most of the victims were mammals, including rare or endangered animals like golden monitor lizards, leopard cats, and four-horned antelope. These incidents aren’t just tragic for the animals; they also pose serious safety risks for drivers and come at a steep economic cost.

The researchers didn’t stop at counting the accidents. They wanted to understand where and why they were happening. Using maps, field surveys, and computer models, they identified three major danger zones on that road. These hotspots were responsible for more than 60% of all wildlife collisions. They also learned that accidents happened more often in the autumn, when animals are more active after the rainy season. And they discovered that curvy roads and sections far from human settlements saw the most accidents, while areas that ran through denser forests or had straighter paths tended to be safer for both animals and people.

Kyes and the other scientists published a paper in Nature summarizing their findings in a call to action. The study shows that with the right measures, like building wildlife overpasses, putting up warning signs, lowering speed limits in key areas, and educating the public — these deadly accidents can be reduced, both protecting wildlife and making roads safer for everyone. The work done in Banke National Park offers a roadmap for how science and conservation can work together to create safer spaces for nature and humans alike.