About

Jacob Negrey is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Arizona. He is a primatologist broadly interested in behavior, disease, and aging. His research combines methods from animal behavior, ecology, epidemiology, and physiology to better understand the complex processes underlying primate health. He co-directs the Ngogo Chimpanzee Project, which studies and protects wild chimpanzees living at Ngogo in Kibale National Park, Uganda. Additionally, he directs the Applied Primate Eco-omics (A.P.E.) Lab at the University of Arizona, where the focus is on applying noninvasive 'omics' methods, such as microbiomics, to address ecological questions relevant to human welfare and nonhuman primate conservation. His research encompasses multisystem aging patterns, immune health effects on behavior and welfare, human impacts on viral and bacterial communities in chimpanzees, and physiological predictors of social relationships. His work aims to contribute to primatology, infectious disease ecology, animal behavior, aging and diseases of aging, endocrinology, ecophysiology, and wildlife conservation.

Research topics

• Computer Science
• Artificial Intelligence
• Evolutionary biology
• Zoology
• Medicine
• Ecology
• Endocrinology
• Demography
• Biology
• Pathology
• Anatomy

Selected publications

• Data and R Script: Terrestrial gait speed as a proxy for physical function across adulthood in wild chimpanzees

  Figshare · 2026-03-30

  datasetOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Data and R script for a study assessing age-related variation in gait speed (i.e., walking speed) in a particularly long-lived wild chimpanzee population.

  PublisherDOI

• Data from: Lethal conflict after group fission in wild chimpanzees

  DRYAD · 2026-02-12

  datasetOpen access

  Territorial conflicts in animals inform aspects of human warfare, but civil war, with its shifting group identities, appears to be uniquely human. We report a rare, permanent fission in the largest-known group of wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Using 30 years of behavioral observations and network analyses, we identify an abrupt transition from cohesion to polarization in 2015 and the emergence of two distinct groups by 2018. Over the next seven years, members of one of the splinter groups made 24 attacks, killing at least seven mature males and 17 infants in the other group. We provide the data and code used to analyze chimpanzee social networks. We provide the data and the code for other analyses, including figures on changes in group size, social networks, and mortality.

  PublisherDOI

• Space Use Analysis for "Lethal conflict after group fission in wild chimpanzees"

  Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · 2026-03-25

  datasetOpen access
  PublisherDOI

• Lethal conflict after group fission in wild chimpanzees

  Science · 2026-04-09

  article

  Territorial conflicts in animals can inform aspects of human warfare, but civil war, with its shifting group identities, has not been previously observed. We report a rare, permanent fission in the largest-known group of wild chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes ). Using 30 years of behavioral observations and network analyses, we describe a transition from cohesion to polarization in 2015 and the emergence of two distinct groups by 2018. Over the next 7 years, members of one group made 24 attacks, killing at least seven mature males and 17 infants in the other group. These findings indicate that group identities can shift and escalate into lethal hostility in one of our closest living relatives in the absence of the cultural markers often thought necessary for human warfare.

  PublisherDOI

• Space Use Analysis for "Lethal conflict after group fission in wild chimpanzees"

  Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · 2026-03-25

  datasetOpen access
  PublisherDOI

• Dietary Pattern-Induced Gut Microbiota Differences Are Associated with White Matter Volume Changes in Middle-Aged Female Macaques

  Nutrients · 2026-03-31

  articleOpen access

  Background/Objectives: Western and Mediterranean diets have divergent effects on the brain. The gut microbiome may mediate diet effects, and specific microbes may be particularly significant contributors to these processes. Oscillospira, a genus of gut-dwelling bacteria, has been implicated as a key microbial target. Other peripheral contributors may include short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), insulin resistance, and microbial translocation. Methods: We determined the effects of long-term (31 months, ~9 human years) consumption of a Mediterranean or Western-type diet on Oscillospira abundance, fecal SCFAs, plasma BCAAs, soluble CD14 (sCD14), and insulin responses in a randomized trial of 38 middle-aged female cynomolgus macaques (Macaca fascicularis). We determined diet effects and associations between dependent variables. For variables that were affected by diet composition and significantly associated with Oscillospira, we tested whether Oscillospira abundance mediated the effects of diet. Results: The Mediterranean diet resulted in higher Oscillospira (p = 0.004) and SCFAs (acetate p = 0.002; propionate p = 0.049) and lower BCAAs (isoleucine p = 0.035; leucine p = 0.007; valine p < 0.001). The Western diet increased insulin resistance (p = 0.040) and WM loss (p = 0.011). Oscillospira abundance was negatively associated with BCAAs (leucine p = 0.007; valine p = 0.005) and insulin resistance (insulin AUC: p = 0.024; increase in insulin AUC from pretreatment: p = 0.020), with trends for isoleucine (p = 0.066) and sCD14 (p = 0.103). Oscillospira abundance was positively associated with acetate (p = 0.032) and WM volume changes (p = 0.012). Oscillospira abundance significantly mediated the effects of diet on white matter volume changes (p = 0.020) and on insulin resistance (insulin AUC: p = 0.012 at study end; increase in insulin AUC during study: p = 0.020), presenting potential pathways through which diet may influence the brain. Conclusions: These findings suggest that diet-driven differences in Oscillospira are linked to metabolic regulation and white matter integrity, and Oscillospira may mediate the relationships. The results highlight a potential role for diet–microbiome interactions in shaping metabolic and brain aging trajectories.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Data and R Script: Terrestrial gait speed as a proxy for physical function across adulthood in wild chimpanzees

  Figshare · 2026-03-30

  datasetOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Data and R script for a study assessing age-related variation in gait speed (i.e., walking speed) in a particularly long-lived wild chimpanzee population.

  PublisherDOI

• Differential effects of Mediterranean vs. Western diets on coronary atherosclerosis and peripheral artery transcriptomics

  Frontiers in Nutrition · 2025-07-10 · 4 citations

  articleOpen access

  Western diets and social subordination are associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease. In this study, we investigated the impact of Western versus Mediterranean diets and social status on atherogenesis and arterial transcriptional profiles in a 30-month randomized study in middle-aged, cynomolgus monkeys ( Macaca fascicularis ). Atherosclerosis (intimal area) in the left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery was higher in the Western diet group compared to the Mediterranean diet group ( F = 5.25, p = 0.03). There was no effect of diet on intimal lesion size in the iliac and carotid arteries ( p > 0.05). Diet altered the transcriptome in iliac arteries; at an FDR threshold of 0.05, seven transcripts were upregulated ( WDR62, PKDCC, SLC29A2, MARS1, RAD21L1, MAMDC4 , and ENSMFAG00000052859), and 13 transcripts were downregulated ( PIK3R1, PABPC1, PAQR8, ZNF667, FGGY, EIF4B, ALDH3A2, ANP32A, KDM3B, XPO7, RPS20 , TOMM20 , and CHCHD7 ) in the Western compared to the Mediterranean diet cohort. These genes are associated with endothelial dysfunction, smooth muscle proliferation and migration, angiogenesis, and abnormal extracellular matrix (ECM) dynamics. In addition, two transcripts (ENSMFAG00000064154 [LncRNA] and ENSMFAG00000057515 [small nucleolar RNA U13]) were downregulated in subordinate monkeys relative to their dominant counterparts (FDR < 0.05). There was no effect of diet on the carotid artery transcriptome, but we did identify significant social status effects: Eleven transcripts were upregulated ( KCNQ4, STIM1, TNKS1BP1, CSNK1D, INPPL1, PNPLA7, F10, RAD9A , KCNIP3, ENSMFAG00000059809 [LncRNA], and ENSMFAG00000053865 [secreted protein A0A7N9CS45]), and seven transcripts were downregulated ( IRAK1BP1, KIAA0513, SMIM15, PSMD14, TOPORS, ARPC2 , and ENSMFAG00000050714 [LncRNA]) in subordinate relative to dominant monkeys. These alterations were associated with dysregulated vascular tone and smooth muscle contractility, apoptosis, and abnormal ECM dynamics. These findings demonstrate differential effects of diet composition and social status depending on arterial sites. The effects of Western diet were observed primarily in the coronary and iliac arteries, whereas social status differences were observed primarily in the carotid arteries. Our results demonstrate that Western diets and social subordination have adverse, yet distinct and tissue-specific impacts on arterial atherogenesis and transcriptional profiles, highlighting the interplay between diet, social hierarchy, and vascular health.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Mediterranean vs. Western diet effects on the primate cerebral cortical pre‐synaptic proteome: Relationships with the transcriptome and multi‐system phenotypes

  Alzheimer s & Dementia · 2025-03-01 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  INTRODUCTION: Diet quality mediates aging-related risks of cognitive decline, neurodegeneration, and Alzheimer's disease (AD) through poorly defined mechanisms. METHODS: The effects of diet on the presynaptic proteome of the temporal cortex were assessed in 36 female cynomolgus macaques randomized to Mediterranean or Western diets for 31 months. Associations between the presynaptic proteome, determined by synaptometry by time-of-flight (SynTOF) mass spectrometry, adjacent cortex transcriptome, and multi-system phenotypes were assessed using a machine learning approach. RESULTS: Six presynaptic proteins (DAT, Aβ42, calreticulin, LC3B, K48-Ubiquitin, SLC6A8) were elevated in the presynaptic proteome in Mediterranean diet consumers (p < 0.05). Transcriptomic data and multi-system phenotypes significantly predicted SynTOF markers. Selected SynTOF markers were correlated with changes in white matter volumes, hepatosteatosis, and behavioral and physiological measures of psychosocial stress. DISCUSSION: These observations demonstrate that diet composition drives cortical presynaptic protein composition, that transcriptional profiles strongly predict the presynaptic proteomic profile, and that presynaptic proteins were closely associated with peripheral metabolism, stress responsivity, neuroanatomy, and socio-emotional behavior. HIGHLIGHTS: Mediterranean and Western diets differentially altered the cortical presynaptic proteome, which is strongly associated with neurodegeneration and cognitive decline. Presynaptic proteomic markers were predicted by transcriptomic profiles in the adjacent cortex, and by multi-system anatomical, physiologic, and behavioral phenotypes. The data demonstrate that brain phenotypes and brain-body interactions are influenced by common dietary patterns, suggesting that improving diet quality may be an effective means to maintain brain health.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Decreases in chimpanzee respiratory disease signs and enteric viral quantity following implementation of anthroponotic disease prevention protocols at a long-term research site

  Biological Conservation · 2025-05-16 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Lawrence B. Holzman

  University of Pennsylvania

  57 shared

• John R. Sedor

  45 shared

• Laura Mariani

  University of Colorado Denver

  39 shared

• Matthew G. Sampson

  Duke University

  39 shared

• Jarcy Zee

  Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

  35 shared

• Michelle Hladunewich

  The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center

  29 shared

• Heather N. Reich

  University of Toronto

  29 shared

• M. Rogers

  Manchester Academic Health Science Centre

  29 shared

Labs

• Applied Primate Eco-omics (A.P.E.) LabPI

Education

• Ph.D., Department of Anthropology

  Boston University

  2019