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problem solving in great apes (pan paniscus, pan troglodytes, gorilla gorilla, and pongo abelii): the effect of visual feedback.what kind of information animals use when solving problems is a controversial topic. previous research suggests that, in some situations, great apes prefer to use causally relevant cues over arbitrary ones. to further examine to what extent great apes are able to use information about causal relations, we presented three different puzzle box problems to the four nonhuman great ape species. of primary interest here was a comparison between one group of apes that received visual access to the func ...201222644115
brief communication: hand preference for bimanual and unimanual feeding in captive gorillas: extension in a second colony of apes.right-hand dominance is widely considered to be a uniquely human trait. whether nonhuman primates exhibit similar population-level hand preferences remains a topic of considerable debate. despite extensive research focusing on laterality in nonhuman primates, our interpretation of these studies is limited due to methodological issues including the lack of a common measure of hand preference and the use of tasks that may not be reliable indicators of handedness. the use of consistent methods betw ...201222639326
facilitating play through communication: significance of teeth exposure in the gorilla play face.primate facial expressions (fes) likely play an important role in primate society: through facial signals, individuals can potentially send and receive information and may benefit from coordinating their behavior accordingly. many primates use a relaxed open mouth (rom) facial display or “play face” (pf) during play behavior, where the mouth is open but teeth are covered. in addition to this conventional pf, however, western lowland gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla) also use a full pf where the ...201222512019
severe idiopathic hypocalcemia in a juvenile western lowland gorilla, gorilla gorilla gorilla.a 6-mo-old, male western lowland gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla) was evaluated because of tetany of both hands. the gorilla had alternating periods of constipation, diarrhea, and bloating since birth. a diagnosis of idiopathic hypocalcemia was based on severe hypocalcemia, a normal vitamin d level, response to oral calcium and vitamin d therapy, and eventual resolution. idiopathic hypocalcemia, an uncommon disease in neonatal humans, should be considered in young gorillas with persistent gastr ...201222448527
genomics: gorilla gorilla gorilla. 201222398552
quantifying lateral femoral condyle ellipticalness in chimpanzees, gorillas, and humans.articular surfaces of limb bones provide information for understanding animal locomotion because their size and shape are a reflection of habitual postures and movements. here we present a novel method for quantifying the ellipticalness (i.e., departure from perfectly circular) of the lateral femoral condyle (lfc), applying this technique to hominid femora. three-dimensional surface models were created for 49 homo sapiens, 34 pan troglodytes and 25 gorilla gorilla femora. software was developed ...201223042636
the al 333-160 fourth metatarsal from hadar compared to that of humans, great apes, baboons and proboscis monkeys: non-conclusive evidence for pedal arches or obligate bipedality in hadar hominins.based on comparisons to non-statistically representative samples of humans and two great ape species (i.e. common chimpanzees pan troglodytes and lowland gorillas gorilla gorilla), ward et al. (2011) concluded that a complete hominin fourth metatarsal (4th mt) from hadar, al 333-160, belonged to a committed terrestrial biped with fixed transverse and longitudinal pedal arches, which was no longer under selection favoring substantial arboreal behaviors. according to ward et al., the hadar 4th mt ...201222995931
face and eye scanning in gorillas (gorilla gorilla), orangutans (pongo abelii), and humans (homo sapiens): unique eye-viewing patterns in humans among hominids.because the faces and eyes of primates convey a rich array of social information, the way in which primates view faces and eyes reflects species-specific strategies for facial communication. how are humans and closely related species such as great apes similar and different in their viewing patterns for faces and eyes? following previous studies comparing chimpanzees (pan troglodytes) with humans (homo sapiens), this study used the eye-tracking method to directly compare the patterns of face and ...201222946925
non-invasive monitoring of physiological stress in the western lowland gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla): validation of a fecal glucocorticoid assay and methods for practical application in the field.enzymeimmunoassays (eias) allow researchers to monitor stress hormone output via measurement of fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (fgcms) in many vertebrates. they can be powerful tools which allow the acquisition of otherwise unobtainable physiological information from both captive animals and wild animals in remote forest habitats, such as great apes. however, methods for hormone measurement, extraction and preservation need to be adapted and validated for field settings. in preparation for a f ...201222926327
scheuermann kyphosis in nonhuman primates.a cadaveric survey of the thoracic spines of extant species of nonbipedal primates for the presence of scheuermann kyphosis.201222922891
reye's or reye's-like syndrome in western lowland gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla).a 15-year-old western lowland gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla) died shortly after transfer to the north carolina zoo.201222882671
target animacy influences chimpanzee handedness.we employed a bottom-up, quantitative method to investigate great ape handedness. our previous investigation of gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla) demonstrated that contextual information influenced an individual's handedness toward target objects. specifically, we found a significant right-hand bias for unimanual actions directed toward inanimate target objects but not for actions directed to animate target objects (forrester et al. in anim cogn 14(6):903-907, 2011). using the identical methodo ...201222829099
evaluation of different storage methods to characterize the fecal bacterial communities of captive western lowland gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla).freezing is considered to be the best method for long-term storage of bacterial dna from feces; however this method cannot be usually applied for samples of wild primates collected in the challenging conditions of the tropical forest. in order to find an alternative conservation method of fecal samples from wild great apes, we compared freezing with other fixation methods. fecal samples from 11 captive gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla) from three czech zoos were stored using freezing, rna stabi ...201222828127
use of buckets as tools by western lowland gorillas.while all great apes have been documented to use tools, gorillas are arguably the least proficient tool users. in 2009, a western lowland gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla) at the buffalo zoo was observed using a bucket, which had been provided as part of normal enrichment, as a tool to collect water. we conducted a brief, ad libitum investigation to confirm the validity of the initial observation. we then carried out a systematic investigation of the behavior in 2010. we collected 72 hr of video ...201222290615
metastatic endocervical adenocarcinoma in a western lowland gorilla (gorilla g. gorilla): no evidence of virus-induced carcinogenesis.cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among women. nevertheless, similar tumours have only been rarely described in great apes. this report characterizes the pathological and molecular features of a metastatic endocervical adenocarcinoma in a western lowland gorilla (gorilla g. gorilla).201222273046
variation in anthropoid vertebral formulae: implications for homology and homoplasy in hominoid evolution.variation in vertebral formulae within and among hominoid species has complicated our understanding of hominoid vertebral evolution. here, variation is quantified using diversity and similarity indices derived from population genetics. these indices allow for testing models of hominoid vertebral evolution that call for disparate amounts of homoplasy, and by inference, different patterns of evolution. results are interpreted in light of "short-backed" (j exp zool (mol dev evol) 302b:241-267) and ...201222532475
phenotypic correlates of male reproductive success in western gorillas.sexual selection is thought to drive the evolution of sexually dimorphic traits that increase male reproductive success. despite a large degree of sexual dimorphism among haplorhine primates, phenotypic traits that may influence the reproductive success of males are largely unstudied due to long life spans and the difficulties in quantifying such traits non-invasively. here we employ digital photogrammetry of body length and crest size, as well as ranking of the gluteal muscle size, to test whet ...201222386152
genetic characterization of simian foamy viruses infecting humans.simian foamy viruses (sfvs) are retroviruses that are widespread among nonhuman primates (nhps). sfvs actively replicate in their oral cavity and can be transmitted to humans after nhp bites, giving rise to a persistent infection even decades after primary infection. very few data on the genetic structure of such sfvs found in humans are available. in the framework of ongoing studies searching for sfv-infected humans in south cameroon rainforest villages, we studied 38 sfv-infected hunters whose ...201223015714
apes (gorilla gorilla, pan paniscus, p. troglodytes, pongo abelii) versus corvids (corvus corax, c. corone) in a support task: the effect of pattern and functionality.apes (gorilla gorilla, pan paniscus, p. troglodytes, pong abelii) and corvids (corvus corax, c. corone) are among the most proficient and flexible tool users in the animal kingdom. although it has been proposed that this is the result of convergent evolution, little is known about whether this is limited to behavior or also includes the underlying cognitive mechanisms. we compared several species of apes (bonobos, chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans) and corvids (carrion crows and common raven ...201222545765
estrogenic plant foods of red colobus monkeys and mountain gorillas in uganda.phytoestrogens, or naturally occurring estrogen-mimicking compounds, are found in many human plant foods, such as soybeans (glycine max) and other legumes. because the consumption of phytoestrogens may result in both health benefits of protecting against estrogen-dependent cancers and reproductive costs of disrupting the developing endocrine system, considerable biomedical research has been focused on the physiological and behavioral effects of these compounds. despite this interest, little is k ...201222460223
recovery of arcobacter spp. from nonlivestock species.the genus arcobacter encompasses campylobacter-like organisms that grow in air at 25 degrees c. arcobacter has been detected or isolated from clinically healthy livestock as well as aborted fetuses and has been presumptively identified as either campylobacter or leptospira, based on its growth in selective semisolid media. because reports from nonlivestock species are limited, this study examined nine presumptive isolates of arcobacter spp. from an alpaca (vicugna pacos), black rhinoceros (dicer ...201122950328
[malaria in hominids].malaria parasites (plasmodium spp) that infect great apes are very poorly documented malaria was first described in gorillas, chimpanzees and orangutans in the early 20th century, but most studies were confined to a handful of chimpanzees in the 1930-1950s and a few orangutans in the 1970s. the three plasmodium species described in african great apes were very similar to those infecting humans. the most extensively studied was p reichenowi, because of its close phylogenetic relation to p. falcip ...201122844753
the evolution and consequences of snar family transposition in primates.the small nf90 associated rna (snar) family of small noncoding rnas (ncrna) appears to have evolved from retrotransposon ancestors at or soon after pivotal stages in primate evolution. snars are thought to be derived from a flam c-like (free left alu monomer) element through multiple short insertion/deletion (indel) and nucleotide (nt) substitution events. tracing snar's complex evolutionary history through primate genomes led to the recent discovery of two novel retrotransposons: the alu/snar r ...201122545241
y-chromosome variation in hominids: intraspecific variation is limited to the polygamous chimpanzee.we have previously demonstrated that the y-specific ampliconic fertility genes daz (deleted in azoospermia) and cdy (chromodomain protein y) varied with respect to copy number and position among chimpanzees (pan troglodytes). in comparison, seven y-chromosomal lineages of the bonobo (pan paniscus), the chimpanzee's closest living relative, showed no variation. we extend our earlier comparative investigation to include an analysis of the intraspecific variation of these genes in gorillas (gorilla ...201122216243
consequences of non-intervention for infectious disease in african great apes.infectious disease has recently joined poaching and habitat loss as a major threat to african apes. both "naturally" occurring pathogens, such as ebola and simian immunodeficiency virus (siv), and respiratory pathogens transmitted from humans, have been confirmed as important sources of mortality in wild gorillas and chimpanzees. while awareness of the threat has increased, interventions such as vaccination and treatment remain controversial. here we explore both the risk of disease to african a ...201122216162
clinical management of a western lowland gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla) with a cardiac resynchronization therapy device.a 24-yr-old, male western lowland gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla) was diagnosed with congestive heart failure using transesophageal and transthoracic echocardiology. new york heart association (nyha) class iii was assigned to the severity of the condition. over 16 mo, this progressed to nyha class iv despite increasing medical therapy. repeated evaluations suggested that implantation of a cardiac resynchronization therapy device with a defibrillator (crt-d) could benefit this animal based on c ...201122946404
a new look at an old canal.attempts to explain abducens vulnerability have centered around the petroclival segment of its pathway in the skull base, in particular, its relations to the dorello's canal and the petrosphenoidal ligament of grüber. this study aims to contribute to the definition of the dorello's canal and to the understanding of abducens vulnerability from an evolutionary perspective. the petroclival region and the dorello's canal in particular were examined in a sample of 86 primate skulls. the sample contai ...201122451800
entodiniomorphid ciliates from the wild lowland gorilla with the description of a new genus and three new species.the entodiniomorphid ciliates in gorilla in gabon, west africa, were surveyed and observed by light and scanning electron microscopy. as a result, 4 species belonging to the families troglodytellidae and cycloposthiidae were identified, and 3 of them were new to science. these species were described as goriliophilus thoracatus n.g., n.sp., troglodytella gabonensis n.sp., and prototapirella gorillae n.sp. sem observations of goriliophilus and troglodytella revealed in particular the surface struc ...201123196284
differences in gorilla nettle-feeding between captivity and the wild: local traditions, species typical behaviors or merely the result of nutritional deficiencies?behavioral and cognitive studies on captive apes often pay little attention to the specific environmental conditions of their study subjects. a recent report form byrne et al. (anim cogn doi: 10.1007/s10071-011-0403-8, 2011), comparing nettle-feeding techniques between captive and wild gorillas, claimed to document "the strongest evidence yet to come from any great ape that observational learning of a skilled conspecific" can allow social learning and culture in gorillas. an earlier study with s ...201121927847
a new plan for the 800-pound gorilla (guerrilla): perinatal mortality in afghanistan: a 21st century counterinsurgency model for afghanistan.afghanistan has the highest perinatal mortality rate in the entire world. one afghani woman dies every 30 minutes from perinatal- related event. one of eight afghani women will die from perinatal events. maternal mortality is (use percentage, not fractions) 1600/100,000 vs 13 /100,000 in the united states. afghanistan is one of the only countries in the world in which the average woman?s life expectancy is shorter than a males- despite the active, nationwide combat fought primarily by afghani ma ...201122173597
frequent and recent human acquisition of simian foamy viruses through apes' bites in central africa.human infection by simian foamy viruses (sfv) can be acquired by persons occupationally exposed to non-human primates (nhp) or in natural settings. this study aimed at getting better knowledge on sfv transmission dynamics, risk factors for such a zoonotic infection and, searching for intra-familial dissemination and the level of peripheral blood (pro)viral loads in infected individuals. we studied 1,321 people from the general adult population (mean age 49 yrs, 640 women and 681 men) and 198 ind ...201122046126
hiv-1 group p is unable to antagonize human tetherin by vpu, env or nef.abstract: background: a new subgroup of hiv-1, designated group p, was recently detected in two unrelated patients of cameroonian origin. hiv-1 group p phylogenetically clusters with sivgor suggesting that it is the result of a cross-species transmission from gorillas. until today, hiv-1 group p has only been detected in two patients and its degree of adaptation to the human host is largely unknown. previous data have shown that pandemic hiv-1 group m but not non-pandemic group o or rare group ...201122171785
'the big gorilla'. bjc healthcare has foothold in st. louis area. 201121936466
the 800-pound gorilla: state lawmakers are trying to cut costs so the program will survive, even when millions more are added to the rolls. 201122069839
Review and hypothesis: does graves' disease develop in non-human great apes?Background: Graves' disease, caused by stimulatory thyrotropin receptor (TSHR) autoantibodies, has not been observed in animals. In contrast, Hashimoto's thyroiditis develops in chickens, rats, mice, dogs, and marmosets. Attempts to induce an immune response in mice to the luteinizing-hormone receptor suggested that autoantigen glycosylation was one parameter involved in breaking self-tolerance. Over evolution, TSHR glycosylation increased from three asparagine-linked-glycans (N-glycans) in fish ...201122066476
park gazettement and integrated conservation and development as factors in community conflict at bwindi impenetrable forest, uganda.conflicts between protected-area managers and local people are common, but the drivers of conflict are rarely analyzed. this limits opportunities to identify strategies that reduce conflict and the magnitude of resulting threats to conservation. integrated conservation and development (icd) was adopted at bwindi impenetrable forest, uganda, to reduce conflict during gazettement of the national park, but the success of this approach remains contested. we retrieved documents of conflict written by ...201122044616
the magic cup: great apes and domestic dogs (canis familiaris) individuate objects according to their properties.despite current interest in dog (canis familiaris) cognition, very little is known about how dogs represent objects and how they compare with other species, such as the great apes. therefore, we investigated how dogs and great apes (chimpanzees [pan troglodytes], bonobos [pan paniscus], orangutans [pongo pygmaeus], gorillas [gorilla gorilla]) individuate objects in a classical violation of expectation paradigm. we used a container (magic cup) with a double bottom that allowed us to change the ty ...201121574687
nutritional geometry: gorillas prioritize non-protein energy while consuming surplus protein.it is widely assumed that terrestrial food webs are built on a nitrogen-limited base and consequently herbivores must compensate through selection of high-protein foods and efficient nitrogen retention. like many folivorous primates, gorillas' diet selection supports this assumption, as they apparently prefer protein-rich foods. our study of mountain gorillas (gorilla beringei) in uganda revealed that, in some periods, carbohydrate-rich fruits displace a large portion of protein-rich leaves in t ...201121632622
the effect of feeding enrichment methods on the behavior of captive western lowland gorillas.three feeding enrichment treatments were tested in an outdoor yard used by six western lowland gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla). in "yard-toss," forage was thrown by hand over one third of the yard. in "set-up," forage and browse were hand-scattered throughout the yard. "set-up enriched" was similar with the addition of either a hay- and forage-filled feeder or forage-filled boomer ball(s) suspended from a climbing structure. each treatment was presented on 5 d. behavior was recorded for 30 mi ...201121656848
effects of combination birth control on estrous behavior in captive western lowland gorillas, gorilla gorilla gorilla.combination birth control pills (cbc) are one of the most common birth control methods used for western lowland gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla) housed in zoos. since zoos are interested in maintaining as many natural behaviors as possible, it is important to know how contraception may affect social and sexual interactions among group members. although some data are available regarding the influence of the pill on sexual behavior in human females, no data are available on its effects on gorill ...201121674603
functional anatomy and adaptation of male gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla) with comparison to male orangutans (pongo pygmaeus).great apes diversified during the miocene in old world forests. two lineages, gorillas in africa and orangutans in asia, have sexual dimorphisms of super-sized males, though they presumably diverged from a smaller common ancestor. we test the hypothesis that they increased in body mass independently and convergently, and that their many postcranial differences reflect locomotor differences. whole body dissections of five adult male gorillas and four adult male orangutans allowed quantification o ...201121809463
femoral morphology and femoropelvic musculoskeletal anatomy of humans and great apes: a comparative virtopsy study.the proximal femoral morphology of fossil hominins is routinely interpreted in terms of muscular topography and associated locomotor modes. however, the detailed correspondence between hard and soft tissue structures in the proximal femoral region of extant great apes is relatively unknown, because dissection protocols typically do not comprise in-depth osteological descriptions. here, we use computed tomography and virtopsy (virtual dissection) for non-invasive examination of the femoropelvic m ...201121809454
diversity of microsporidia (fungi: microsporidia) among captive great apes in european zoos and african sanctuaries: evidence for zoonotic transmission?abstract: two hundred and seventeen captive great apes (150 chimpanzees, pan troglodytes; 14 bonobos, pan paniscus; 53 western gorillas, gorilla gorilla) and 20 personnel from thirteen european zoos and two african sanctuaries were sampled and examined in order to determine the occurrence ofenterocytozoon bieneusi and species of encephalitozoon in faecal specimens and to compare the epidemiological situation between zoos and sanctuaries. microsporidia were detected at all sampling sites. sequenc ...201121776888
the limits of endowment effects in great apes (pan paniscus, pan troglodytes, gorilla gorilla, pongo pygmaeus).the endowment effect describes the bias that people often value things that they possess more than things they do not possess. thus, they are often reluctant to trade items in their possession for items of equivalent value. some nonhuman primates appear to share this bias with humans, but it remains an open question whether they show endowment effects to the same extent as humans do. we investigated endowment effects in all four great ape species (pan paniscus, pan troglodytes, gorilla gorilla, ...201121767009
african monkeys are infected by plasmodium falciparum nonhuman primate-specific strains.recent molecular exploration of the plasmodium species circulating in great apes in africa has revealed the existence of a large and previously unknown diversity of plasmodium. for instance, gorillas were found to be infected by parasites closely related to plasmodium falciparum, suggesting that the human malignant malaria agent may have arisen after a transfer from gorillas. although this scenario is likely in light of the data collected in great apes, it remained to be ascertained whether p. f ...201121730135
copy number variation analysis in the great apes reveals species-specific patterns of structural variation.copy number variants (cnvs) are increasingly acknowledged as an important source of evolutionary novelties in the human lineage. however, our understanding of their significance is still hindered by the lack of primate cnv data. we performed intraspecific comparative genomic hybridizations to identify loci harboring copy number variants in each of the four great apes: bonobos, chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans. for the first time, we could analyze differences in cnv location and frequency in ...201121824994
deep trophoblast invasion and spiral artery remodelling in the placental bed of the lowland gorilla.in contrast to baboon or rhesus macaque, trophoblast invasion in the human placental bed occurs by the interstitial as well as the endovascular route and reaches as deep as the inner myometrium. we here describe two rare specimens of gorilla placenta. in the light of recent findings in the chimpanzee, we postulated the occurrence of deep invasion in gorilla pregnancy. tissues were processed for histology (pas, orcein), lectin staining (ulex europaeus agglutinin 1) and immunohistochemistry (cytok ...201121705078
extreme conservation leads to recovery of the virunga mountain gorillas.as wildlife populations are declining, conservationists are under increasing pressure to measure the effectiveness of different management strategies. conventional conservation measures such as law enforcement and community development projects are typically designed to minimize negative human influences upon a species and its ecosystem. in contrast, we define "extreme" conservation as efforts targeted to deliberately increase positive human influences, including veterinary care and close monito ...201121687709
gorilla genome structural variation reveals evolutionary parallelisms with chimpanzee.structural variation has played an important role in the evolutionary restructuring of human and great ape genomes. recent analyses have suggested that the genomes of chimpanzee and human have been particularly enriched for this form of genetic variation. here, we set out to assess the extent of structural variation in the gorilla lineage by generating 10-fold genomic sequence coverage from a western lowland gorilla and integrating these data into a physical and cytogenetic framework of structur ...201121685127
genetic heterogeneity in internal transcribed spacer genes of balantidium coli (litostomatea, ciliophora).the species balantidium coli is the only ciliate that parasitizes humans. it has been described in other primates, and it has been proposed that the species b. suis from pigs and b. struthionis from ostriches are synonyms of b. coli. previous genetic analysis of pig and ostrich balantidium isolates found a genetic polymorphism in the its region but its taxonomic relevance was not established. we have extended the genetic analysis to balantidium isolates of pig, gorilla, human and ostrich origin. ...201121840258
comparing the performances of apes (gorilla gorilla, pan troglodytes, pongo pygmaeus) and human children (homo sapiens) in the floating peanut task.recently, mendes et al. [1] described the use of a liquid tool (water) in captive orangutans. here, we tested chimpanzees and gorillas for the first time with the same "floating peanut task." none of the subjects solved the task. in order to better understand the cognitive demands of the task, we further tested other populations of chimpanzees and orangutans with the variation of the peanut initially floating or not. twenty percent of the chimpanzees but none of the orangutans were successful. a ...201121687710
Traditional-medical knowledge and perception of pangolins (Manis sps) among the Awori people, Southwestern Nigeria.ABSTRACT: medicines is taken from the wild; hence demand by traditional medicine is a cause of over-exploitation of wild animals. Indiscriminate use of endangered species portends grievous implications for biodiversity conservation. This study investigated the dynamics of the use of pangolin in trado-medicinal preparations amongst the Awori people.201121884607
a revised timeline for the origin of plasmodium falciparum as a human pathogen.while plasmodium falciparum is known to have had a strong effect on human evolution, the time period when p. falciparum first infected ancestors of modern humans has remained uncertain. recent advances demonstrated that p. falciparum evolved from ancestors of gorilla parasites via host switching. here, we estimate the range of dates during which this host switch may have occurred. dna sequences of portions of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene obtained from gorilla parasites closely related to ...201122183792
Echocardiographic parameters of captive western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla).A total of 163 echocardiographic studies on western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) were submitted for evaluation; 140 from 99 animals were suitable for analysis. Of these, 81 studies (42 studies from 35 males ranging in age from 11-41+ yr and 39 studies from 31 females ranging in age from 11-41+ yr) are reported here. Three studies from 3 females and 56 studies from 30 males were excluded from this report due to cardiac abnormalities. Cardiac parameters measured were aortic root (Ao ...201122204050
Allelic Lineages of the Ficolin Genes (FCNs) Are Passed from Ancestral to Descendant Primates.The ficolins recognize carbohydrates and acetylated compounds on microorganisms and dying host cells and are able to activate the lectin pathway of the complement system. In humans, three ficolin genes have been identified: FCN1, FCN2 and FCN3, which encode ficolin-1, ficolin-2 and ficolin-3, respectively. Rodents have only two ficolins designated ficolin-A and ficolin-B that are closely related to human ficolin-1, while the rodent FCN3 orthologue is a pseudogene. Ficolin-2 and ficolin-3 have so ...201122194813
evolutionary glycomics: characterization of milk oligosaccharides in primates.free oligosaccharides are abundant components of mammalian milk and have primary roles as prebiotic compounds, in immune defense, and in brain development. a mass spectrometry-based technique is applied to profile milk oligosaccharides from apes (chimpanzee, gorilla, and siamang), new world monkeys (golden lion tamarin and common marmoset), and an old world monkey (rhesus). the purpose of this study is to evaluate the patterns of primate milk oligosaccharide composition from a phylogenetic persp ...201121214271
complete coding sequences and phylogenetic analysis of porcine bocavirus.here we report, for the first time, the nearly full-length genome sequence of porcine bocavirus (pbov), a recently discovered parvovirus from pigs. phylogenetic trees based on this genome sequence showed that pbov belongs to the branch containing the genus bocavirus, which comprises canine minute virus (cnmv), bovine parvovirus, gorilla bocavirus and human bocavirus (hbov), and was most closely related to the group containing cnmv. pbov was predicted to contain three potential orfs encoding the ...201121228124
gorilla and orangutan brains conform to the primate cellular scaling rules: implications for human evolution.gorillas and orangutans are primates at least as large as humans, but their brains amount to about one third of the size of the human brain. this discrepancy has been used as evidence that the human brain is about 3 times larger than it should be for a primate species of its body size. in contrast to the view that the human brain is special in its size, we have suggested that it is the great apes that might have evolved bodies that are unusually large, on the basis of our recent finding that the ...201121228547
aging increases inattentional blindness to the gorilla in our midst.when engaged in an attention-demanding task, people are surprisingly vulnerable to inattentional blindness--the failure to notice an unexpected event. two theories of cognitive aging, attentional capacity models and inhibitory deficit models, make opposite predictions about age differences in susceptibility to inattentional blindness. we tested these predictions using an inattentional blindness paradigm developed by simons and chabris (1999) and found that older adults were more likely to experi ...201121261412
nasopharyngeal carcinoma as a paradigm of cancer genetics.the unusual incidence patterns for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (npc) in china, northeast india, arctic inuit, peninsular and island southeast asia, polynesian islanders, and north africans indicate a role for npc risk genes in chinese, chinese-related, and not-obviously chinese-related populations. renewed interest in npc genetic risk has been stimulated by a hypothesis that npc population patterns originated in bai-yue / pre-austronesian-speaking aborigines and were dispersed during the last glaci ...201121272439
comparative studies of placentation and immunology in non-human primates suggest a scenario for the evolution of deep trophoblast invasion and an explanation for human pregnancy disorders.deep trophoblast invasion in the placental bed has been considered the hallmark of human pregnancy. it occurs by two routes, interstitial and endovascular, and results in transformation of the walls of the spiral arteries as they traverse the decidua and the inner third of the myometrium. disturbances in this process are associated with reproductive disorders such preeclampsia. in contrast, trophoblast invasion in old world monkeys occurs only by the endovascular route and seldom reaches the myo ...201121273370
a comparative study on testicular microstructure and relative sperm production in gorillas, chimpanzees, and orangutans.we performed histological analyses for comparing testicular microstructure between the gorilla, chimpanzee, and orangutan. testicular samples were obtained by autopsy or biopsy from 10 gorillas, 11 chimpanzees, and 7 orangutans from several zoos and institutes. the seminiferous epithelia were thick in the chimpanzee and orangutan but thin in the gorilla. leydig cells in the interstitial tissue were abundant in the gorilla. the acrosomic system was extremely well developed in the orangutans. our ...201121287585
individual differences in susceptibility to inattentional blindness.inattentional blindness refers to the finding that people do not always see what appears in their gaze. though inattentional blindness affects large percentages of people, it is unclear if there are individual differences in susceptibility. the present study addressed whether individual differences in attentional control, as reflected by variability in working memory capacity, modulate susceptibility to inattentional blindness. participants watched a classic inattentional blindness video (simons ...201121299325
gorilla success. 201121322173
inferential reasoning by exclusion in great apes, lesser apes, and spider monkeys.using the cups task, in which subjects are presented with limited visual or auditory information that can be used to deduce the location of a hidden reward, call (2004) found prima facie evidence of inferential reasoning by exclusion in several great ape species. one bonobo (pan paniscus) and two gorillas (gorilla gorilla) appeared to make such inferences in both the visual and auditory domains. however, common chimpanzees (pan troglodytes) were successful only in the visual domain, and bornean ...201121341913
detection and genetic characterization of enteroviruses circulating among wild populations of chimpanzees in cameroon: relationship with human and simian enteroviruses.enteroviruses (evs), members of the family picornaviridae, are a genetically and antigenically diverse range of viruses causing acute infections in humans and several old world monkey (owm) species. despite their known wide distribution in primates, nothing is currently known about the occurrence, frequency, and genetic diversity of enteroviruses infecting apes. to investigate this, 27 chimpanzee and 27 gorilla fecal samples collected from undisturbed jungle areas with minimal human contact in c ...201121345956
toddlers' duration of attention towards putative threat.although individual differences in reactions to novelty in the toddler years have been consistently linked to risk for developing anxious behavior, toddlers' attention towards a novel, putatively threatening stimulus while in the presence of other enjoyable activities has rarely been examined as a precursor to such risk. the current study examined how attention towards an angry-looking gorilla mask in a room with alternative opportunities for play in 24-month-old toddlers predicted social inhibi ...201121373365
timing of ectocranial suture activity in gorilla gorilla as related to cranial volume and dental eruption.research has shown that pan and homo have similar ectocranial suture synostosis patterns and a similar suture ontogeny (relative timing of suture fusion during the species ontogeny). this ontogeny includes patency during and after neurocranial expansion with a delayed bony response associated with adaptation to biomechanical forces generated by mastication. here we investigate these relationships for gorilla by examining the association among ectocranial suture morphology, cranial volume (as a p ...201121385182
probiotic lactobacillus rhamnosus downregulates fcer1 and hrh4 expression in human mast cells.to investigate the effects of four probiotic bacteria and their combination on human mast cell gene expression using microarray analysis.201121390145
the 800-pound gorilla in the healthcare living room. 201121396496
behavioral responses of silverback gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla) to videos.this study examined the impact of video presentations on the behavior of 4 silverback, western lowland gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla). on each of 5 occasions, gorillas viewed 6 types of videos (blue screen, humans, an all-male or mixed-sex group engaged in low activity, and an all-male or mixed-sex group engaged in agonistic behavior). the study recorded behavioral responses and watching rates. all gorillas preferred dynamic over static videos; 3 watched videos depicting gorillas significant ...201121442506
historical sampling reveals dramatic demographic changes in western gorilla populations.today many large mammals live in small, fragmented populations, but it is often unclear whether this subdivision is the result of long-term or recent events. demographic modeling using genetic data can estimate changes in long-term population sizes while temporal sampling provides a way to compare genetic variation present today with that sampled in the past. in order to better understand the dynamics associated with the divergences of great ape populations, these analytical approaches were appl ...201121457536
human metapneumovirus infection in wild mountain gorillas, rwanda.the genetic relatedness of mountain gorillas and humans has led to concerns about interspecies transmission of infectious agents. human-to-gorilla transmission may explain human metapneumovirus in 2 wild mountain gorillas that died during a respiratory disease outbreak in rwanda in 2009. surveillance is needed to ensure survival of these critically endangered animals.201121470468
fatal balamuthia mandrillaris infection in a gorilla - first case of balamuthiasis in germany.background  a 12-year-old female western lowland gorilla died in a zoological garden in germany after exhibiting general neurological signs. methods  balamuthia mandrillaris was identified as causative agent by indirect immunofluorescent staining of brain sections and confirmed by pcr and respective sequencing. results  the animal suffered from a chronic progressive necrotizing amebic meningoencephalitis. conclusion  this is the first case of balamuthia amebic encephalitis in germany.201121496054
recombination analysis based on the complete genome of bocavirus.abstract: bocavirus include bovine parvovirus, minute virus of canine, porcine bocavirus, gorilla bocavirus, and human bocaviruses 1-4 (hbovs). although recent reports showed that recombination happened in bocavirus, no systematical study investigated the recombination of bocavirus. the present study performed the phylogenetic and recombination analysis of bocavirus over the complete genomes available in genbank. results confirmed that recombination existed among bocavirus, including the likely ...201121507266
local traditions in gorilla manual skill: evidence for observational learning of behavioral organization.elaborate manual skills of food processing are known in several species of great ape; but their manner of acquisition is controversial. local, "cultural" traditions show the influence of social learning, but it is uncertain whether this includes the ability to imitate the organization of behavior. dispute has centered on whether program-level imitation contributes to the acquisition of feeding techniques in gorillas. here, we show that captive western gorillas at port lympne, kent, have develope ...201121512796
infants' knowledge of their own species.recognition of individuals at first sight is important for social species and can be achieved by attending to facial or body information. previous research suggests that infants possess a perceptual template for evolutionarily relevant stimuli, which may include humans, dangerous animals (e.g. snakes), but not non-dangerous animals. to be effective, such a mechanism should result in a systematic preference for attending to humans over non-dangerous animals. using a preferential looking paradigm, ...201121536558
target animacy influences gorilla handedness.we investigated the unimanual actions of a biological family group of twelve western lowland gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla) using a methodological approach designed to assess behavior within social context from a bottom-up perspective. measures of both the lateralization of unimanual actions (left, right) and the target of the action (animate, inanimate) were assessed during dual, synchronized video observations of naturalistic behavior. this paper demonstrates a corelationship between hande ...201121562817
relationship between behavior, adrenal activity, and environment in zoo-housed western lowland gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla).monitoring adrenal activity through noninvasive fecal hormone sampling is rapidly gaining popularity as a tool to assess zoo animal welfare. however, few studies have sought to investigate the interrelationships between behavior, adrenal activity, and environment, and ask whether both behavioral and adrenal monitoring strategies are required to assess welfare sufficiently. we present the findings of a 9-month study of a small group (one male, two females) of western lowland gorillas, gorilla gor ...201121563213
[great apes: who are they? are they able to self-medicate?].six great ape species (chimpanzees, bonobos, western gorillas, eastern gorillas, sumatran orangutans and bornean orangutans) live in tropical forests of africa and south-east asia. their habitat, severely threatened by deforestation, contains a vast chemical and biological diversity. during the last decade, we have isolated and identified novel pharmacologically active compounds from plants used by wild chimpanzees in kibale national park, uganda. our continuous observations over the last 12 yea ...201122844752
debilitating clinical disease in a wild-born captive western lowland gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla) co-infected with varicella zoster virus (vzv) and simian t-lymphotropic virus (stlv).a wild-born, 34-yr-old female western lowland gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla) was transferred between zoologic collections in the united kingdom. adjustment to its new environment was difficult and a series of health problems ensued. progressive severe illness of multiple etiologies, and a failure to respond to multiple therapies, led to its euthanasia 5 mo later. disease processes included severe thoracic and axillary cutaneous ulceration of t2-3 dermatome distribution, gastroenteritis, ulcer ...201021370655
brief communication: captive gorillas are right-handed for bimanual feeding.predominance of right-handedness has historically been considered as a hallmark of human evolution. whether nonhuman primates exhibit population-level manual bias remains a controversial topic. here, we investigated the hypothesis that bimanual coordinated activities may be a key-behavior in our ancestors for the emergence and evolution of human population-level right-handedness. to this end, we collected data on hand preferences in 35 captive gorillas (gorilla gorilla) during simple unimanual r ...201020033918
great apes use weight as a cue to find hidden food.bonobos (pan paniscus; n=5), orangutans (pongo pygmaeus abelii; n=6), and a gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla; n=1) were presented with two opaque cups, one empty and one baited (containing two bananas). subjects had to independently gain weight information about the contents of the cups to find the hidden food. six apes attained above chance level within a total of 16 trials. successful subjects spontaneously adopted the method of successively lifting the cups and thus comparing their weight bef ...201021328591
male-immature relationships in multi-male groups of mountain gorillas (gorilla beringei beringei).we examined the pattern and possible functions of social interactions between adult males and immatures in three free-ranging, multi-male groups of mountain gorillas (gorilla beringei beringei). previous studies conducted during the 1970s when groups contained one to three adult males concluded that male-immature relationships were likely to be a form of low-cost paternal investment [stewart, mountain gorillas: three decades of research at karisoke. cambridge, uk: cambridge university press, 200 ...201021328594
ecological divergence and medial cuneiform morphology in gorillas.gorillas are more closely related to each other than to any other extant primate and are all terrestrial knuckle-walkers, but taxa differ along a gradient of dietary strategies and the frequency of arboreality in their behavioral repertoire. in this study, we test the hypothesis that medial cuneiform morphology falls on a morphocline in gorillas that tracks function related to hallucial abduction ability and relative frequency of arboreality. this morphocline predicts that western gorillas, bein ...201021093014
in vivo bone strain and finite-element modeling of the craniofacial haft in catarrhine primates.hypotheses regarding patterns of stress, strain and deformation in the craniofacial skeleton are central to adaptive explanations for the evolution of primate craniofacial form. the complexity of craniofacial skeletal morphology makes it difficult to evaluate these hypotheses with in vivo bone strain data. in this paper, new in vivo bone strain data from the intraorbital surfaces of the supraorbital torus, postorbital bar and postorbital septum, the anterior surface of the postorbital bar, and t ...201021105871
complete nucleotide sequence and evolutionary analysis of a gorilla foamy virus.to shed light on primate foamy virus (fv) evolution, we determined the complete nucleotide sequence of the gorilla simian foamy virus (sfvgor). starting from a conserved region in the integrase (in) domain of the pol gene we cloned the viral genome to the 5' and 3' ltr into plasmid vectors and elucidated its nucleotide sequence. the sequences of both ltrs were determined by nucleotide sequencing of separate pcr products from the primer-binding site or the bel region and ltrs. all protein motifs ...201021106805
evolution of subterminal satellite (stsat) repeats in hominids.subterminal satellite (stsat) repeats, consisting of 32-bp-long at-rich units (gatatttccatgtt(t/c)atacagatagcggtgta), were first found in chimpanzee and gorilla (african great apes) as one of the major components of heterochromatic regions located proximal to telomeres of chromosomes. stsat repeats have not been found in orangutan (asian great ape) or human. this patchy distribution among species suggested that the stsat repeats were present in the common ancestor of african great apes and subse ...201021136140
genome digging: insight into the mitochondrial genome of homo.a fraction of the neanderthal mitochondrial genome sequence has a similarity with a 5,839-bp nuclear dna sequence of mitochondrial origin (numt) on the human chromosome 1. this fact has never been interpreted. although this phenomenon may be attributed to contamination and mosaic assembly of neanderthal mtdna from short sequencing reads, we explain the mysterious similarity by integration of this numt (mtancestor-1) into the nuclear genome of the common ancestor of neanderthals and modern humans ...201021151557
buffalo hepcidin: characterization of cdna and study of antimicrobial property.hepcidin, a novel gene encoded, 25 residue, 2-3 kda cysteine rich cationic peptide synthesized in liver cells play an important role in iron metabolism in addition to its antimicrobial activity. in this study hepcidin cdna expressed on hepatocytes of bubalus bubalis has been characterized and the antibacterial activity of buffalo hepcidin analog has been determined. the complete buffalo hepcidin sequence is of 324 bp and have an orf of 249 nucleotides from 14 to 262. the sequence analysis at nuc ...201021161377
influence of the task on hand preference: individual differences among gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla).the degree of task complexity and bimanual complementarity have been proposed as factors affecting lateralization strength in humans. however, a large number of studies have demonstrated group-level lateral hand bias for different manual activities in numerous non-human primate species. however, no study has tested the effects that a variety of tasks may have in inducing differences in hand preference. here, we aim to test if 3 adult gorillas exhibited a greater hand preference bias performing 4 ...201021212681
dental and phylogeographic patterns of variation in gorillas.gorilla patterns of variation have great relevance for studies of human evolution. in this study, molar morphometrics were used to evaluate patterns of geographic variation in gorillas. dental specimens of 323 adult individuals, drawn from the current distribution of gorillas in equatorial africa were divided into 14 populations. discriminant analyses and mahalanobis distances were used to study population structure. results reveal that: 1) the west and east african gorillas form distinct cluste ...201020494403
african apes as reservoirs of plasmodium falciparum and the origin and diversification of the laverania subgenus.we investigated two mitochondrial genes (cytb and cox1), one plastid gene (tufa), and one nuclear gene (ldh) in blood samples from 12 chimpanzees and two gorillas from cameroon and one lemur from madagascar. one gorilla sample is related to plasmodium falciparum, thus confirming the recently reported presence in gorillas of this parasite. the second gorilla sample is more similar to the recently defined plasmodium gaboni than to the p. falciparum-plasmodium reichenowi clade, but distinct from bo ...201020498054
the von economo neurons in frontoinsular and anterior cingulate cortex in great apes and humans.the von economo neurons (vens) are large bipolar neurons located in frontoinsular (fi) and anterior cingulate cortex in great apes and humans, but not other primates. we performed stereological counts of the vens in fi and la (limbic anterior, a component of anterior cingulate cortex) in great apes and in humans. the vens are more numerous in humans than in apes, although one gorilla approached the lower end of the human range. we also examined the ontological development of the vens in fi and l ...201020512377
do gorillas (gorilla gorilla) and orangutans (pongo pygmaeus) fail to represent objects in the context of cohesion violations?recent research suggests that witnessing events of fission (e.g., the splitting of a solid object) impairs human infants', human adults', and non-human primates' object representations. the present studies investigated the reactions of gorillas and orangutans to cohesion violation across different types of fission events implementing a behavioral paradigm previously used with human infants. results suggest that fission events vary in their impact on representational abilities but do not destroy ...201020537325
endocranial shape asymmetries in pan paniscus, pan troglodytes and gorilla gorilla assessed via skull based landmark analysis.brain shape asymmetries or petalias consist of the extension of one cerebral hemisphere beyond the other. a larger frontal or caudal projection is usually coupled with a larger lateral extent of the more projecting hemisphere relative to the other. the concurrence of these petalial components is characteristic of hominins. studies aimed at quantifying petalial asymmetries in human and great ape endocasts rely on the definition of the midline of the endocranial surface. studies of brain material ...201020537369
quantifying mental foramen position in extant hominoids and australopithecus: implications for its use in studies of human evolution.the location of the mental foramen on the mandibular corpus has figured prominently in debates concerning the taxonomy of fossil hominins and gorilla gorilla. in this study we quantify the antero/posterior (a/p) position of the mental foramen across great apes, modern humans and australopithecus. contrary to most qualitative assessments, we find significant differences between some extant hominoid species in mental foramen a/p position supporting its potential usefulness as a character for taxon ...201020564583
noninvasive saliva collection techniques for free-ranging mountain gorillas and captive eastern gorillas.this study was designed to develop a simple, noninvasive method for saliva collection: a first step toward developing new diagnostic tests to survey gorillas for infectious diseases. the subjects included free-ranging mountain gorillas (gorilla beringei beringei) in the parc national des volcans, rwanda, and a group of orphan mountain and grauer's gorillas (gorilla heringei graueri) housed nearby in a temporary holding facility. three collection methods were used to recover saliva from discarded ...201020597210
validation of multiple diagnostic techniques to detect cryptosporidium sp. and giardia sp. in free-ranging western lowland gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla) and observations on the prevalence of these protozoan infections in two populations in gabon.anthropozoonotic diseases threaten the survival of western lowland gorillas (gorilla gorilla gorilla). use of accurate diagnostic techniques in gorilla health monitoring contributes to the conservation of gorillas by providing robust information for appropriate management decisions. to identify suitable protozoa diagnostic techniques for wild gorillas, 95 fecal specimens were collected in lopé national park and east of moukalaba-doudou national park in gabon, areas with high and low levels of hu ...201020597211
dientamoeba fragilis: initial evidence of pathogenicity in the western lowland gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla).a 7-yr-old female western lowland gorilla (gorilla gorilla gorilla) shared an enclosure with 10 other gorillas at the limbe wildlife centre (lwc), a wildlife rehabilitation centre in cameroon. the gorilla had been living at the lwc for more than 6 yr prior to the exhibition of irritable bowel syndrome (ibs)-like clinical signs. the gorilla improved dramatically after metronidazole therapy. the report suggests that metronidazole was effective because it eliminated the protozoa, dientamoeba fragil ...201020597233
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