Cyclical nursing patterns in wild orangutans

Smith, Tanya M.; Austin, Christine; Hinde, Katie; Vogel, Erin R.; Arora, Manish

doi:10.1126/sciadv.1601517

Cited by 49 publications

(88 citation statements)

References 48 publications

(90 reference statements)

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“…Strontium concentrations also depend upon the degree to which a cascade of metabolic processes discriminate against or favour Sr relative to Ca [25]. Specifically, Sr is excluded from breast-milk [24,25] and breast-feeding finishes long before 10 years of age in Gorilla and Pan when all incisor roots are completed but does continue for >8 years in Pongo [23] and so cannot, in Pongo, be discounted as an explanation for some regions of Sr depletion in incisor root dentine. These regions, however, would presumably coincide with regions of Ba enrichment [23].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Specifically, Sr is excluded from breast-milk [24,25] and breast-feeding finishes long before 10 years of age in Gorilla and Pan when all incisor roots are completed but does continue for >8 years in Pongo [23] and so cannot, in Pongo, be discounted as an explanation for some regions of Sr depletion in incisor root dentine. These regions, however, would presumably coincide with regions of Ba enrichment [23]. It seems more likely, however, that fluctuation in Sr levels in great ape dentine and cementum would result from seasonal fluctuations in diet.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Both barium and strontium are incorporated into growing tooth tissues but Ba levels are much lower [23][24][25] and typically <10 ppm rather than ~200 ppm for Sr. Recently, enriched regions of Ba in orang-utan teeth have been linked to concentrated levels in breast milk and Ba released from the maternal skeleton during periods of nutritional stress [23].…”

Section: Trace Elements In Cementummentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recently, enriched regions of Ba in orang-utan teeth have been linked to concentrated levels in breast milk and Ba released from the maternal skeleton during periods of nutritional stress [23]. Strontium on the other hand is depleted in breast milk [24,25] but is known to mirror both background environmental levels and diet [26,27,28].…”

Section: Trace Elements In Cementummentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since cementum continues to grow incrementally over a lifetime, the distribution of Sr in great ape teeth may yet provide chronological information about diet, geographical location and even late nursing history. Nursing history and diet are extremely diverse among living great apes, especially between gorillas and orang utans in their natural habitats [23].…”

Section: Trace Elements In Cementummentioning

confidence: 99%

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Incremental distribution of strontium and zinc in great ape and fossil hominin cementum using synchrotron X-ray fluorescence mapping

Dean

Cabec

Spiers

et al. 2018

J. R. Soc. Interface.

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Cementum and the incremental markings it contains have been widely studied as a means of ageing animals and retrieving information about diet and nutrition. The distribution of trace elements in great ape and fossil hominin cementum has not been studied previously. Synchrotron X-ray fluorescence (SXRF) enables rapid scanning of large tissue areas with high resolution of elemental distributions. First, we used SXRF to map calcium, phosphorus, strontium and zinc distributions in great ape dentine and cementum. At higher resolution, we compared zinc and strontium distributions in cellular and acellular cementum in regions where clear incremental markings were expressed. We then mapped trace element distributions in fossil hominin dentine and cementum from the 1.55–1.65 million year old site of Koobi Fora, Kenya. Zinc, in particular, is a precise marker of cementum increments in great apes, and is retained in fossil hominin cementum, but does not correspond well with the more diffuse fluctuations observed in strontium distribution. Cementum is unusual among mineralized tissues in retaining so much zinc. This is known to reduce the acid solubility of hydroxyapatite and so may confer resistance to resorption by osteoclasts in the dynamic remodelling environment of the periodontal ligament and alveolar bone.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Trace Elements In Cementummentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Trace Elements In Cementummentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Trace Elements In Cementummentioning

confidence: 99%

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Incremental distribution of strontium and zinc in great ape and fossil hominin cementum using synchrotron X-ray fluorescence mapping

Dean

Cabec

Spiers

et al. 2018

J. R. Soc. Interface.

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Diversity and temporal dynamics of primate milk microbiomes

Muletz‐Wolz

Kurata

Himschoot

et al. 2019

American J Primatol

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Milk is inhabited by a community of bacteria and is one of the first postnatal sources of microbial exposure for mammalian young. Bacteria in breast milk may enhance immune development, improve intestinal health, and stimulate the gut-brain axis for infants. Variation in milk microbiome structure (e.g., operational taxonomic unit[OTU] diversity, community composition) may lead to different infant developmental outcomes. Milk microbiome structure may depend on evolutionary processes acting at the host species level and ecological processes occurring over lactation time, among others. We quantified milk microbiomes using 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing for nine primate species and for six primate mothers sampled over lactation. Our data set included humans (Homo sapiens, Philippines and USA) and eight nonhuman primate species living in captivity (bonobo [Pan paniscus], chimpanzee [Pan troglodytes], western lowland gorilla [Gorilla gorilla gorilla], Bornean orangutan [Pongo pygmaeus], Sumatran orangutan [Pongo abelii], rhesus macaque [Macaca mulatta], owl monkey [Aotus nancymaae]) and in the wild (mantled howler monkey [Alouatta palliata]). For a subset of the data, we paired microbiome data with nutrient and hormone assay results to quantify the effect of milk chemistry on milk microbiomes.We detected a core primate milk microbiome of seven bacterial OTUs indicating a robust relationship between these bacteria and primate species. Milk microbiomes differed among primate species with rhesus macaques, humans and mantled howler monkeys having notably distinct milk microbiomes. Gross energy in milk from protein and fat explained some of the variations in microbiome composition among species.Microbiome composition changed in a predictable manner for three primate mothers over lactation time, suggesting that different bacterial communities may be selected for as the infant ages. Our results contribute to understanding ecological and evolutionary relationships between bacteria and primate hosts, which can have applied benefits for humans and endangered primates in our care. K E Y W O R D Sbacteria, breast milk, infant, lactation, mammals, microbiota, symbiosis

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Maternal care in wild toque macaques (Macaca sinica) involves prolonged lactation and interbirth intervals as adaptations to reduce maternal depletion and infant mortality in harsh environments

Dittus,

Baker

2023

American J Primatol

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Weaning age in primates has been challenging to measure and new methods, involving molecular biomarkers in feces, tissue, or teeth have contributed to a solution. Here, we used a direct approach by briefly anesthetizing 442 female toque macaques (Macaca sinica) of Sri Lanka (over a 17‐year period) and manually testing their mammary tissue for the presence or absence of milk. Milk tests were related to known offspring ages and maternal care behaviors and indicated that older infants suckled milk well past the weaning age of 7 months that is often reported for food‐provisioned primates. Mothers strongly rejected their infants' nursing attempts in two phases, the first at 7 months as an honest signal “giving notice” promoting a shift to greater independence from milk to solid food, and when “shutting down” at final weaning after 12–18 months. The shift to supplementary lactation coincided also with the cessation of mothers carrying their infants and a resumption of cycling. All infants up to 7.2 months suckled milk, 91% of them did up to 18 months, this continued for 42% of infants beyond 18 months, and normally none received milk after 22 months. Lactation extended into 2.2% of cycling and 10.7% of pregnant females (up to 50% of gestation). The interbirth interval was prolonged by factors predicted to draw on female metabolic energy reserves and included the duration of lactation, growth among primiparas, and dietary limitations. The last also increased menarche. Females offset the metabolic costs of lactation with increased foraging and catabolism, but infants died when lactation costs seemingly compromised maternal condition. The prolonged lactation and slowed reproduction are considered adaptations to promote infant survival and growth in an environment where the natural food supply limits population growth and competition for food and water impacts the mortality of the youngest the most.

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Cyclical nursing patterns in wild orangutans

Abstract: Immature wild orangutans cyclically vary mothers’ milk consumption over 8 or more years, weaning later than other mammals.

Cited by 49 publications

References 48 publications

Incremental distribution of strontium and zinc in great ape and fossil hominin cementum using synchrotron X-ray fluorescence mapping

Incremental distribution of strontium and zinc in great ape and fossil hominin cementum using synchrotron X-ray fluorescence mapping

Diversity and temporal dynamics of primate milk microbiomes

Maternal care in wild toque macaques (Macaca sinica) involves prolonged lactation and interbirth intervals as adaptations to reduce maternal depletion and infant mortality in harsh environments

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