Tyagi RK, Tandel N, Deshpande R, Engelman RW, Patel SD, Tyagi P. Humanized Mice Are Instrumental to the Study of
Plasmodium falciparum Infection.
Front Immunol 2018;
9:2550. [PMID:
30631319 PMCID:
PMC6315153 DOI:
10.3389/fimmu.2018.02550]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2018] [Accepted: 10/17/2018] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Research using humanized mice has advanced our knowledge and understanding of human haematopoiesis, non-adaptive and adaptive immunity, autoimmunity, infectious disease, cancer biology, and regenerative medicine. Challenges posed by the human-malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum include its complex life cycle, the evolution of drug resistance against anti-malarials, poor diagnosis, and a lack of effective vaccines. Advancements in genetically engineered and immunodeficient mouse strains, have allowed for studies of the asexual blood stage, exoerythrocytic stage and the transition from liver-to-blood stage infection, in a single vertebrate host. This review discusses the process of "humanization" of various immunodeficient/transgenic strains and their contribution to translational biomedical research. Our work reviews the strategies employed to overcome the remaining-limitations of the developed human-mouse chimera(s).
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