The problem: Mice are really useful for human health research — in addition to being cheap and easy to take care of, they have a lot of similar genes and organs to humans. But there’s always a point when testing has to be moved to people, where scientists may find the treatment they’ve spent so much time and money on just doesn’t work the same way.
The solution: Scientists made a mouse with an immune system containing cells, lymph nodes, and a gut biome that produces the same antibodies as humans. They did this by adjusting levels of estrogen, which the body uses to regulate antibody levels and responses, to produce specific immune responses.
What’s next: Being able to test treatments and model diseases in a human-like immune system earlier in the research process could make for more effective research, plus allow for more experiments that humans aren’t likely to sign up for. It could also eliminate the need for using primates like monkeys and apes in biomedical research.