Genetic engineering in non-human primates has long been limited by the need for virus-based gene delivery methods. Recently, researchers in Japan successfully used a nonviral system to introduce a transgene—that is, a gene that has been artificially inserted into an organism—into cynomolgus monkeys, which is a species of primate closely related to humans. The paper is published in the journal Nature Communications.
Small animal models such as mice do not fully replicate the complexity of human diseases, particularly in areas like infectious disease and neuropsychiatric disorders. This limitation has made non-human primates an essential model for biomedical research.
However, genetic modification of these primates has been challenging. For example, conventional virus-based methods require specialized containment facilities and are limited in terms of the size of transgenes that the viruses can carry. Also, these methods do not allow for precise selection of modified embryos before implantation.