| abstract |
Nonobese Diabetic Mice (NOD mice) that do not develop diabetes may be bred to produce F 1 offspring that develop a condition that closely mimics rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in humans. The RA-like disease in the F 1 mice, designated NOD-RA mice, is similar to human RA in clinical, radiological, histological and serological characteristics. The parents (F 0 ) and their progeny (F 1 ) are not diabetic and never develop hyperglycemia, and the parental mice (F 0 ) do not themselves exhibit any symptoms of the RA-like condition that afflicts some of their progeny. The incidence, penetrance, gender domination, progression, and lifelong exacerbation of symptoms after pregnancy shown in the RA-like condition afflicting NOD-RA mice are all comparable to phenomena observed in the human disease. The NOD-RA mice provide a new spontaneous model of human RA that will be useful for studying rheumatoid arthritis and testing new drugs and reagents for treating or diagnosing the disease. |