Primates (2003) 44:301–302 DOI 10.1007/s10329-003-0035-y

B OO K R E V I EW

Takashi Kageyama

Eman P. Fridman: Medical primatology – history, biological foundations and applications (edited by Ronald D. Nadler) Taylor & Francis, London, 2002. 371 pp. ISBN: 0-415-27583-0

Published online: 15 April 2003 Ó Japan Monkey Centre and Springer-Verlag 2003

For the 32 years between 1960 and 1992, the author Eman P. Fridman was affiliated with the Sukhumi Primate Center (est. 1927) of the former Soviet Union. Although it was the oldest medical primate center in the world, where 20 species of primates were researched extensively, its history ended in 1992 following the collapse of the Soviet Union. The majority of researchers then moved to the new Institute of Medical Primatology, Academy of Medical Sciences, Russia – a former branch institution in the Sochi Region (Adler). What was the fate of many non-human primates kept at the Sukhumi Primate Center? Fridman notes with pathos that, while ‘over 7,000 monkeys’ were at the disposal of the Sukhumi Primate Center in the beginning of the 1990s, ‘no more than 300 primates’ survived the war in Abkhazia by 1996. The book consists of three sections, as denoted in the subtitle; history, biological foundations, and applications. Since the author served as the Head of the Primate Information Center for the Sukhumi Primate Center, it is evident that he was adept and diligent in collecting primate literature from diverse sources. He notes that in 25 years, ‘no fewer than 130,000 publications’ were collected. Snippets from many pioneering contributions, including that of the 1699 book by Edward Tyson, have been distilled in the first section of the book. Descriptions of the primate research conducted by Russian scientists of stature, including Nobelists Elie Mechnikov and Ivan Pavlov, are informative for historians of medical primatology. The second section, Biological Foundations of Medical Primatology, deals with the taxonomy, morphology and physiology of living primates in over 100 pages. The content in this section is more or less similar to those found in various textbooks of primate taxonomy or T. Kageyama Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Aichi 484-8506, Japan, E-mail: [email protected] Tel.: +81-568-63-0578 Fax: +81-568-63-0085

systematics. Nevertheless, it is notable that recent developments of molecular phylogenetic studies are well written, supplemented by recent citations to primary literature. This includes the revision in the taxonomy of New World monkeys, resulting from recent DNA research by Goodman and his colleagues. The last section, Biological Foundations and Applications of Medical Primatology, occupies nearly 100 pages. This component is a significant contribution of this book to the field of medical primatology. Development of various vaccines for human diseases based on primate research is amply described by the author. Since the sub-discipline of medical primatology has grown with the studies on monkeys for curing and/or clarifying the pathological mechanisms of human disease, it is of utmost relevance to identify the differences between human and non-human primates. Thus, this section provides detailed comparisons between humans and monkeys, from various anatomical and physiological aspects with reference to brain, nervous system and other tissues. An extensive reference list, consisting of 65 pages highlighting Russian sources of primary literature is indeed a merit. But the references, numbering well over 1,700, appear idiosyncratic since the studies such as that of M.P.Chumakov and S.A.Voronov mentioned in the text do not appear in the reference list. The text is also not without factual errors, such as the identification of Emil Roux (p.19) and Li Choh Hao (p.47) as Nobelists in medicine. The author also has attributed the aquatic ape theory of human evolution to M.Verhaegen (p.186), who had published a paper in 1995. Factually, it was Sir Alister Hardy (1960), the British marine biologist, who first proposed the aquatic ape theory of human evolution. The author’s original text in Russian has been translated into English. As such, in some instances, the English translation appears awkward and is a jarring mix of technical and colloquial styles. Two examples: ‘‘The larynx in humans is located lower the tongue (supralaryngeal tract), even compared to the chimpanzee,

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which is not advantageous medically, since the food can get into the lungs.’’ (p.179). ‘‘The brain is a unique substance of living creatures, the essence of its bearer.’’ (p.181). Despite such minor blemishes, due to its birds eyeview on the history and development of medical primatology as a sub-discipline, the book can be recommended as a textbook as well as a ready reference source.

Reference Hardy A (1960) Was Man more aquatic in the past? New Scientist 7:642–645