Humanized Murine Model with Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells as a Strategy to Translate Experimental Biomedical Research.

Abstract

One of the main limitations to developing new therapies for human diseases and understanding their pathogenicity mechanisms is difficulty to translate the results obtained in animal models to the clinic. Factors such as the existence of pathogens with unique tropism for human cells and the evolutionary differences between human and animal models often limit the effectiveness of the studies. On the other hand, animal models have been widely used to investigate disease mechanisms due to their shorter lifespans, small size, and easy maintenance. Many advances in the understanding of physiology and genetic architecture enable the development of new models and strategies to overcome species limitations. In this context, humanized mice have emerged as a powerful tool for the investigation of human diseases. Animal models without functional immune system allow the engraftment of human cells and tissues to study human infectious pathogens, tissue transplantation, as well as the human immune system function and ontogeny. Although this model can be limited by the onset of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), it allows the investigation of this specific disease. Here in this chapter, we describe an experimental platform of peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) humanized mice and methods related to the model.