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Common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus), also called white-tufted marmosets or white-tufted-ear marmosets, a New World primate, are banned from exportation out of their home country of Brazil. To further complicate the situation, there are few breeding colonies within the United States, and the few available have been derived from one commercial source and cannot produce enough animals to meet the research needs within the United States. Currently, there is only one commercial source within the US, Worldwide Primates Inc., and their animals are imported from one breeding colony located in South Africa.

Our NIMH colony was founded using animals procured from Worldwide Primates Inc. and is already displaying signs of inbreeding. It is critical for the survival of our program that we infuse our colony with new bloodlines and prevent further inbreeding. In addition, to meet the requirements of new research initiatives, knowledge of the pedigree lines going back four or more generations on all breeders is required to correlate specific gene modifications with animal behavior and neurophysiology. Therefore, the purpose of this procurement is to:

1. Expand the genetic diversity of our current marmoset breeding colony by inducing highbred vigor and concurrently meet the evolving research requirements of our program, by introducing four (4) breeding pairs of marmosets with known pedigree lines spanning four or more generations [four (4) Breeder Females & four (4) Breeder Males].

2. Provide for the preparation of eight (8) marmosets for shipment by providing veterinary and technician services, as well administrative support.

It should also be noted that, to date, most animals procured from Worldwide Primates Inc., our routine domestic supplier of marmosets, originated from one breeding colony, upon genetic testing have similar ancestry, have generally been of poor quality and have arrived older than the age range specified in the procurement. The group under consideration for procurement from John Hopkins University are young, healthy breeders and, most importantly, of a different genetic background than the animals already in our colony. In addition, each animal has a defined pedigree going back several generations. These animals will improve the genetic diversity of our current NIMH breeding colony which is critical to our research mission and meet our requirement for a definitive pedigree to facilitate future research.