High-quality cynomolgus (NHP) PBMCs for immunology and preclinical research. Pick your vial count to see your price now.
Cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis), also known as long-tailed or crab-eating macaques, are the most widely used nonhuman primate specimens for biomedical research. The use of cynomolgus macaques in research began in the mid-20th century as the demand for non-human primates grew in fields like infectious disease, pharmacology, and toxicology. Their availability in the wild, especially across Southeast Asia, and their manageable size made them a practical choice compared to larger primates like rhesus macaques or chimpanzees.
Their close genetic and immunological resemblance to humans makes cynomolgus PBMCs a trusted, highly predictive model across immunology, drug development and infectious-disease research.
Cynomolgus monkeys and humans share a very high degree of genetic similarity, especially in the components of their immune systems, Cynomolgus PBMCs are known to be highly relevant for investigating human immune diseases and responses. This makes Cynomolgus results more predictive of human outcomes compared to results derived from rodent models.
PBMCs from cynomolgus monkeys include immune cells such as T cells, B cells, NK cells, and monocytes, which are vital for investigating autoimmune diseases, immune responses, and immune cell interactions. This makes them a suitable model for understanding the immunogenicity and immunotoxicity of drugs.
Cynomolgus PBMCs allow researchers to assess the efficacy and safety of immunotherapies, biologics, and other drugs targeting the immune system before moving into human clinical trials.
Cynomolgus monkeys have receptors and immune targets resembling humans, making their PBMCs widely accepted for assessing the efficacy, pharmacodynamics, and safety of monoclonal antibodies and other biologic therapies.
Cynomolgus PBMCs are highly valuable for studying zoonotic diseases such as tuberculosis and Simian Immunodeficiency Virus (SIV), which is comparable to HIV in humans. These studies help in the development of vaccines and treatments for infectious diseases with human relevance.
Regulatory agencies, such as the European Medicines Authority, recognize cynomolgus monkey studies as relevant for assessing the immunotoxicity and safety of new drugs and biologics. This speeds up the approval process by providing data from a model that regulators consider predictive of human responses.
See your price instantly and get a full quote including dry-ice shipping within 24 hours.
Get your quote
The study by Qiu et al. (2009), titled “Mucosal Immunization of Cynomolgus Macaques with the VSVΔG/ZEBOVGP Vaccine Stimulates Strong Ebola GP-Specific Immune Responses” investigates the efficacy of a live attenuated recombinant Vesicular Stomatitis Virus (VSV)-based vaccine against Zaire Ebola virus (ZEBOV) in cynomolgus macaques. The vaccine, VSVΔG/ZEBOVGP, expresses the glycoprotein of ZEBOV and was tested using three delivery routes: intranasal (IN), oral (OR), and intramuscular (IM).
All vaccinated macaques were fully protected from a high-dose ZEBOV challenge, showing no clinical signs of disease, while control animals succumbed to infection.
The vaccine elicited strong GP-specific humoral and cellular immune responses across all routes of administration. Long-term memory B and T cell responses were observed, indicative of robust immunity post-vaccination.
Intranasal and oral routes, though less common in vaccine delivery, were as effective as intramuscular administration, offering alternative strategies for mass vaccination in outbreak scenarios.
The vaccine showed no adverse effects across all tested macaques, underscoring its potential for human application. This research highlights the potential of mucosal and systemic vaccination strategies for Ebola virus, providing insights into immune mechanisms and paving the way for improved vaccine accessibility during outbreaks.
As required by institutional and ethical guidelines, the animal is anesthetized before blood collection. Blood collection can be accomplished depending on the size of the animal. For small animals such as rats and mice, blood is typically collected from the tail vein, retro-orbital sinus, or by cardiac puncture. For larger animals such as non-human primates, blood is commonly collected from a vein, mainly the saphenous or femoral vein. To prevent clotting, an anticoagulant is added immediately to the blood. Heparin or EDTA is usually used as anticoagulant. The blood is then gently mixed by inverting the tube several times. Vigorous shaking is avoided to prevent hemolysis.
After addition of the coagulant, the blood is diluted with an equal volume of PBS or sterile saline. This step enables the reduction of cell density to facilitate better separation in the gradient. The solution is then gently mixed by inverting the tube.
A density gradient medium is prepared by adding Ficoll-Paque or Histopaque to a sterile 15 mL or 50 mL centrifuge tube. Approximately 3 mL of density gradient medium per 10 mL of diluted blood is then used. The diluted blood is then layered carefully on top of the density gradient medium. By adding blood along the side of the tube using a pipette, mixing of the mixture is avoided. Next, the mixture is centrifuged at 400 x g for 20-30 minutes at room temperature. Gentle layer separation is ensured by not using the centrifuge brake.
The PBMC layer is identified based on its position alongside three other components. The top layer is composed of plasma. The second layer is thin and white, representing the PBMC layer. The third layer is made up of the density gradient medium which is either Ficoll or Histopaque. Finally, the fourth and bottom layer is composed of red blood cells. The second layer, which is the PBMC layer, is carefully harvested using a pipette and then transferred into a new, clean 15 mL centrifuged tube.
Once the PBMCs have been collected, PBS or culture medium is added to dilute the Ficoll or Histopaque. Next, the solution is centrifuged at 300 x g for 10 minutes at room temperature to pellet the PBMCs. After discarding the supernatant, the cell pellet is gently resuspended in fresh PBS or culture medium. This is followed by two more steps of washing to make sure no Ficoll/Histopaque and other contaminants remain.
To measure viability, cells are first counted using a hemocytometer or an automated cell counter. The cell concentration can be adjusted depending on downstream experiment requirements. Then, cell viability assessment is performed using trypan blue staining or another similar method. Ideally, the viability of PBMCs for functional assays should be above 90%.
If the freshly collected PBMCs are to be used immediately, cells are resuspended in an appropriate medium or buffer for further processing for techniques such as flow cytometry, cell culture, etc. If the PBMCs are to be stored for later use, the cells are frozen in a cryoprotective medium such as 10% DMSO in fetal bovine serum and then gradually cooled to -80°C before transferring to liquid nitrogen for long-term storage. Sources: Fuss et al. (2009), Reidhammer et al. (2016). We cryopreserve the cells in serum-free cryopreservation media to prevent potential effects of growth factors before and during international shipping. Let us know if you have special requests and we will be glad to accommodate them.
Cynomolgus (macaque) PBMCs offer the closest non-human-primate match to the human immune system, making them a mainstay of translational immunology and biologics safety testing where human relevance is critical. Assays run on genuinely NHP-specific immune biology.
Animal PBMCs are also commonly used in preclinical Safety, Toxicology and Translational research to help select the right in vivo model for late preclinical studies.
The following are common PBMC-based assays in preclinical research.
This assay quantifies and analyzes various immune cell subsets within PBMCs, such as T cells, B cells, NK cells, and monocytes. Flow cytometry is widely used to determine immune status in diseases like HIV or cancer, evaluate immune responses to therapies, and track cell phenotypes in clinical trials.
To see to it that the minimum cell number post-thaw is achieved for each unit shipped, we overfill containers with cells by 50%.
We cryopreserve the cells in serum-free cryopreservation media to prevent potential effects of growth factors before and during international shipping via our logistics partners.
We typically ship cells that are in stock within two days. New projects can be delivered within 2 weeks for minipig / pig / beagle / monkey / llama and 3 weeks for alpaca PBMCs.
We ship cells Europe-wide within 24-48 hours, and can ship intercontinentally with dry shipper.
Find quick answers to common questions about our Cynomolgus PBMCs, sourcing, quality, and ordering process.
As a non-human primate model, cynomolgus macaques are genetically and immunologically very close to humans, making their PBMCs highly predictive for translational immunology, vaccine efficacy, monoclonal antibody and preclinical drug testing.
See your price instantly and get a full quote including dry-ice shipping within 24 hours.
Get your quote
