Great apes in the emergence of infectious diseases.

Since the AIDS pandemic and the demonstration that it originated in the accidental transmission of simian retroviruses to humans, no one can ignore the role of nonhuman primates in carrying pathogens that can cross the species barrier to infect humans. In recent decades, viruses as deadly as those for rabies, Herpes B, Marburg hemorrhagic fever, and Ebola have been transferred from monkeys to humans. Because great apes are genetically our closest relatives, the pathogens that colonize these mammals are probably best adapted to pass into humans should accidental exposure occur. This article attempts to evaluate the risks of infection when apes and humans share the same ecosystem.