Measles: What we have learned from non-human primate models

Studies in non-human primates (NHPs) have been crucial for our understanding of measles as a high impact viral disease of humans. Over a century ago, inoculations of NHPs with filtered secretions from measles patients first identified a virus as the causative agent of this disease. In the 1960s, studies in NHPs with measles virus isolates passaged in vitro provided the basis for live-attenuated measles virus vaccines, which became one of the most successful medical interventions in history. More recently, experimental infections of NHPs have provided critical contributions to our understanding of the tropism and pathogenesis of measles virus. This review briefly highlights some of the lessons learned from NHP models of measles virus infection.