Title:Animal Models of Lupus and Lupus Nephritis
Volume: 21
Issue: 18
Author(s): Yong Du, Soomro Sanam, Krause Kate and Chandra Mohan
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Lupus, animal models, nephritis, autoantibody, genetics.
Abstract: This article reviews the commonly used murine strains for studying lupus and lupus nephritis, including
strains that develop lupus spontaneously, congenic strains, induced models of lupus, as well as genetically engineered
mouse models of lupus bearing transgenes or knockouts. The review then summarizes the main cellular and
molecular pathways that lead to the pathogenesis of this autoimmune disease, including autoantibodies. Finally, it
concludes with therapeutic insights gained from using mouse models of lupus. To sum, much of what we have
learned about lupus has arisen from studying mouse models of the disease, and the laboratory mouse continues to
be one of the best tools for studying human SLE.
