Hematological Consequences of Environmental Change During Dewilding of Rhesus Macaques

Hematological Consequences of Environmental Change During Dewilding of Rhesus Macaques | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Hematological Consequences of Environmental Change During Dewilding of Rhesus Macaques P’ng Loke, Annabelle Smith, Kasalina Kiwanuka, Gabriela Pessenda, and 4 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7767375/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The environment shapes immune system development and the regulation of inflammatory responses, which may affect the prevalence of immune mediated inflammatory diseases. However, the hematological consequences of a major environmental change, such as those experienced during migration, remain poorly understood. Here, we used cellular and molecular approaches to assess the immunological consequences in rhesus macaques as they transitioned from an outdoor provisioned environment to an indoor laboratory facility in a process we term ‘dewilding.’ Dewilding led to a sharp decrease in neutrophils and increased lymphocytes in the peripheral blood, a skewing toward a proinflammatory TH1 response, and increased T cell activation. Concurrently, we observed changes in the microbiome, with fungal abundance decreasing while bacterial abundance increased during dewilding. In the bone marrow, we observed increased granulopoiesis, reduced lymphocytes, and reduced hematopoietic stem cells and progenitors, with their shift toward less committed progenitor states. Single-cell nuclear RNA sequencing of the bone marrow revealed increased erythrocyte progenitors in the bone marrow during dewilding, with upregulation of genes involved in hemoglobin control and erythropoiesis. Notably, the vaccination response against measles varied based on vaccination period during the dewilding process. Together, our findings illustrate how dewilding alters immune homeostasis, with implications for understanding immune adaptation in migrants from rural to urban environments and for optimizing immunization strategies during environmental change. Biological sciences/Immunology/Haematopoiesis Health sciences/Rheumatology/Osteoimmunology Biological sciences/Immunology/Innate immune cells/Granulocytes/Neutrophils Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7767375","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":529628478,"identity":"24dc2d1e-7f49-4c92-8735-730e85de4bb5","order_by":0,"name":"P’ng 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