LAUSR

The Public Health Problem: Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and their sequelae disproportionally affect young women, with cervical infections frequently ascending to the upper genital tract, leading to reproductive, pregnancy-related and newborn morbidity. Attributes of this Nonhuman Primate (NHP) as a Model: The pigtailed macaque (Macaca nemestrina) has several advantages over small animals for evaluating STIs, treatment and prevention. This nonhuman primate undergoes a regular menstrual cycle of 28–30 days and shows hormonal and genital tract changes similar to human females. Her microflora and reproductive tract tissues are similar in constituents and function to those of women. Use of the Model: The female pigtailed macaque model was initially developed in the early 1980’s to simulate human Chlamydia trachomatis infection (cervicitis, salpingitis, pelvic inflammatory disease), pathogenesis and disease outcome, which has been key to our understanding of human chlamydial pathogenesis and treatment. The immune responses and histopathological characteristics of infection in this model closely resemble those seen in humans. This NHP model has been expanded to include lower genital tract infections with Trichomonas vaginalis, Mycoplasma genitalium and simian/human immunodeficiency virus (SHIV). Consequently, this model lends itself to co-infection studies using multiple STIs. Summary and Future Direction: M. nemestrina is naturally susceptible to multiple human sexually transmitted infections including C. trachomatis, T. vaginalis and M. genitalium. Pretreatment with exogenous hormones are not required to initiate or sustain these infections. Current model refinement efforts focus on modeling Neisseria gonorrhoeae infection. These STI pathogens are unique in that the majority of infections in women are asymptomatic, vaccines are currently unavailable, and concerns about antimicrobial resistance are on the rise. Supported by NIH and CONRAD HHSN2701700015I, N01 AI 95388, HHSN272201400016C, HHSN27220100006I, R21 AI 074898, P01 AI 39061, P51 OD010425 and MSA-02–315 Disclosure No significant relationships.