title: Mutant mice and animal models of airway allergic disease.
abstract: Eosinophilia is a hallmark of allergic airway inflammation, and eosinophils represent an integral effector leukocyte through their release of various granule-stored cytokines and proteins. Numerous mouse models have been developed to mimic clinical disease and they have been instrumental in furthering our understanding of the role of eosinophils in disease. Most of these models consist of intranasal (i.n.) administration of antigenic proteases including papain and house dust mite (HDM) or the neo-antigen ovalbumin, with a resulting Th2-biased immune response and airway eosinophilia. These models have been particularly informative when combined with the numerous transgenic mice available that modulate eosinophil frequency or the mechanisms involved in their migration. Here, we describe the current models or allergic airway inflammation and outline some of the transgenic mice available to study eosinophils in disease.
authors.affiliation: Centre de Recherche, Institut Universitaire de Cardiologie et de Pneumologie de Québec, 2725 Chemin Ste-Foy, Québec, Canada, G1V 4G5, Marie-renee.blanchet@criucpq.ulaval.ca.
authors.forename: Marie-Renée
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Blanchet
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gold
authors.forename: Kelly M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: McNagny
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004802:Eosinophilia / Q000378:metabolism; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000276:immunology*; D051379:Mice; D008817:Mice, Mutant Strains; D039981:Pyroglyphidae / Q000276:immunology