The translational value of platyrrhine primates in laterality research.

Abstract

One of the trends expected to shape laterality research this decade is closing the gap between human and non-human researchers. A solution to this problem is to view laterality research with a translational lens to leverage knowledge gained in one field to a seemingly disparate field or from one species to another species. The objective of this narrative review was to identify examples of translation in laterality studies that have been conducted in platyrrhine (New World) primates. Our larger goal was to increase rigour and reproducibility for cross-species methodologies in laterality research. As a first step, we surveyed 120 laterality studies conducted in platyrrhine monkeys to describe the research that has been done to date and its impact. In a second step, we conducted a narrative synthesis to identify elements of forward and reverse translation in the reviewed studies on platyrrhine laterality. We described three themes that emerged from our narrative synthesis, and we used these themes to guide our recommendations for future studies in laterality as well as broader health-related research with platyrrhine models.