A mighty mouse: building a better model of multiple sclerosis

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Abstract

The 2 cardinal cell populations mediating adaptive immunity are T and B lymphocytes. These cells play important but poorly understood roles in the immunopathological demyelinating disease multiple sclerosis (MS) and in a widely used animal model of human MS known as EAE. In the current issue of the JCI, 2 research teams report their parallel studies of double-transgenic mice expressing T and B cell receptors that recognize the same myelin protein (see the related articles beginning on pages 2385 and 2393). More than half of the double-transgenic mice spontaneously developed autoimmune demyelination in their spinal cords and optic nerves, exhibiting pathologies reminiscent of human MS. The studies describe an important new model for MS research.

Authors

Richard M. Ransohoff