title: [Mice are not Men and yet… how humanized mice inform us about human infectious diseases].
abstract: The study of human pathologies is often limited by the absence of animal models which are robust, cost-effective and reproduce the hallmarks of human infections. While mice have been frequently employed to study human diseases, many of important pathogens display unique human tropism. These last two decades the graft of human progenitor cells or tissues into -immunodeficient mice has allowed the elaboration of so called humanized mice. Humanized mouse technology has made rapid progress, and it is now possible to achieve high levels of human chimerism in various organs and tissues, particularly the immune system and the liver. The review briefly summarizes the different models of humanized mice available for in vivo experiments. With a focus on lymphotropic, monocytotropic and hepatotropic viruses, we here discuss the current status and future prospects of these models for studying the pathogenesis of infectious diseases. Furthermore, they provide a powerful tool for the development of innovative therapies.
authors.affiliation: Virologie humaine, INSERM-U758, École Normale Supérieure, France.
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cachat
authors.forename: Julien
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Villaudy
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rigal
authors.forename: Louis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gazzolo
authors.forename: Madeleine
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Duc Dodon
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002678:Chimera / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D003141:Communicable Diseases; D003433:Crosses, Genetic; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000172:deficiency / Q000235:genetics; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005544:Forecasting; D022781:Hepatocytes / Q000637:transplantation; D006801:Humans; D007153:Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D053631:Interleukin Receptor Common gamma Subunit / Q000172:deficiency / Q000235:genetics; D008099:Liver / Q000196:embryology; D016031:Liver Transplantation; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008817:Mice, Mutant Strains / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D011828:Radiation Chimera; D013045:Species Specificity; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000196:embryology / Q000637:transplantation; D014183:Transplantation, Heterologous; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology
chemical_list: D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; C507942:Il2rg protein, mouse; D053631:Interleukin Receptor Common gamma Subunit; C499308:Rag2 protein, mouse