An analysis of risk factors for spontaneously occurring type 2 diabetes mellitus in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta)

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2D) is a chronic disease with a high prevalence worldwide. Human literature suggests factors beyond well-known risk factors (e.g., age, body mass index) for T2D: cytomegalovirus serostatus, season of birth, maternal age, birth weight, and depression. Nothing is known, however, about whether these variables are influential in primate models of T2D.

Using a retrospective methodology, we identified 22 cases of spontaneously occurring T2D among rhesus monkeys at our facility. A control sample of n = 1199 was identified.

Animals born to mothers that were ≤5.5 years of age, and animals that showed heightened Activity and Emotionality in response to brief separation in infancy, had a greater risk for development of T2D in adulthood.

Knowledge of additional risk factors for T2D could help colony managers better identify at-risk animals and enable diabetes researchers to select animals that might be more responsive to their manipulations.