Zoo volunteers help explain mysteries of ...(een anaethetised for routine vet procedu...)

Dr Badge welcomed this opportunity to get more regular samples from more of the chimpanzees, since many of them, being quite young and very healthy, are not tranquilised at all frequently. Only the older chimpanzees often have dental problems that require sedation.

The Chimpanzee DNA sampling project relies in large part on the use of special buccal swabs that ensure high yields of good quality DNA with minimal contact. The Isohelix DNA swabs are manufactured by Cell Projects in Maidstone UK . Dr Badge said: "We are grateful to Cell Projects / Isohelix for the special swabs which they supplied, enabling us to obtain the DNA samples more efficiently than is possible with traditional swabs. It has made our- and the chimps' task- a lot easier!"

The chimps that are making such a valuable contribution to science are Kip, William, Peter, Samantha and Elly. Choppers, Noddy, Tojo, Ricky, Flyn, Josie, Victoria, Jomar and Mwekundu have all provided DNA while they have been anaesthetized for other reasons.

Kris Hern, who trained the chimps, found some of them took to it better than others - Peter and William proved particularly good at holding their mouths open.

She commented: "The chimps were trained using positive reinforcement to get the desired behaviour. Once the chimps learnt to open their mouths on cue they were desensitised to the DNA wand and by using this technique, the chimps allowed the swabs to be taken. The training sessions with the chimps is voluntary and the chimps find them mentally and physically stimulating."

Dr Badge added: "The chimpanzees get grapes as a reward and so sometimes the swabs come back a little green, but this does not affect our research. We mi
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