African chimpanzees provide clues to AIDS researchers

This chimpanzee was orphaned by hunters VIDEO CNN's Gary Strieker reports on the newfound value of chimpanzees Windows Media 28K 80K

August 19, 1999
Web posted at: 11:03 p.m. EDT (0303 GMT)

From Correspondent Gary Strieker

LOMIE, Cameroon (CNN) -- A growing number of the baby chimpanzees arriving at this care facility are "bush-meat orphans" whose families were butchered and sold for human consumption in Cameroon.

A quick blood test reveals a newly arrived infant to be free of the simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), a virus closely related to HIV in humans.

Scientists have recently discovered a number of SIV cases among the adult chimpanzee population of Central Africa. The disease appears not to be transmitted from mother to infant, but mainly through sexual contact.

Many believe HIV infection in humans can be traced back to chimpanzees or other African primates. The bush-meat hunters themselves could hold the key to understanding how humans acquired the disease.

One hunter who was nearly killed by a wounded gorilla in a bloody encounter last year was found to be infected with several SIV-related viruses.

It is not uncommon for viruses to spread between humans and other primates, leading scientists to suspect that a larger survey of bush-meat hunters would reveal a high rate of SIV- related viruses.

Blood contact between hunters, chimpanzees and gorillas occurs often, infecting some hunters with SIV-related viruses

Studies are also planned to examine if chimpanzees and other animals have developed a biological defense to prevent the onset of AIDS.

"The most important thing is to understand why African monkeys naturally infected with SIV don't develop AIDS, in contrast to humans," said Dr. Eric Nerrienet of the Pasteur Institute of Cameroon.

But the increasing human demand for bush meat threatens the very existence of wild chimpanzees in Central Africa, not to mention further studies.

"The fact that the chimps are declining in number so rapidly throughout the whole of their range could be a step backward for AIDS research," said Chris Mitchell, an official with the Cameroon Wildlife Aid Fund.

Conservationists hope that the newfound value of chimps as study subjects will result in more government intervention to protect their existence in the years to come.

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