Call for papers on the pathology of humanized mouse models
Over the last decade, the use of chimeric humanized mouse models engrafted with a variety oftissues and cells of human origin has become one of the experimental paradigms most frequently
used in translational research. This has been possible thanks to the establishment of geneticallyengineered mice with severely impaired innate and adaptive immune systems, such as NSG or
NOG mice, offering a highly permissive recipient environment for the functional integration of
the xenotransplanted human components.
Humanized mouse models have been successfully employed for diverse experimentalapplications, including patient-derived tumor xenograft (PDX) models, preclinical testing ofcellular immunotherapies, and other non-neoplastic human diseases. However, a series ofunintended post-transplant disorders have been characterized in recent years. These disorders
are clinically relevant for mouse recipients, limiting their usage, especially for longer-term studies,and represent potential experimental confounders for interpreting preclinical data.
Given the increasing importance of humanized mice, raising awareness of inherent limitations
and unintended consequences of human chimerism is paramount to better understanding thepreclinical relevance and translational potential of these models. To this aim, veterinary andcomparative pathologists working with immunocompromised and humanized mouse models are
uniquely positioned to help define the spectrum of experimentally induced and spontaneous(infectious and noninfectious) conditions affecting these chimeric animals through intentional
pathological characterization.
Therefore, the journal Veterinary Pathology is issuing a call for papers for a special issue on "ThePathology of Humanized Mouse Models" and encourages submission of primary research papers.
Veterinary Pathology (http://journals.sagepub.com/home/vet) is the journal of the American
College of Veterinary Pathologists, the European College of Veterinary Pathologists, and theJapanese College of Veterinary Pathologists.
Research papers for the special issue should focus on one or more of the following aspects:(1) Description of naturally occurring diseases (infectious and noninfectious) ofimmunocompromised mouse strains used for humanization.
(2) Description of post-transplant experimentally induced conditions affecting
immunocompromised mice used for humanization.
(3) Assessment of the pathology endpoints in preclinical studies using mouse recipientsfor human cellular immunotherapies.
(4) Approaches to study the nature and extent of chimerism in humanized mice.
(5) Beyond humans, description of chimeric mouse models xenotransplanted with tissues
or cells from non-human species.
(6) Beyond mice, description of humanized models employing non-murine
immunocompromised animals as recipients.

Interested authors are advised to send a short abstract summary or prospectus to the guest
editors, Dr. Charles Assenmacher (chasse@vet.upenn.edu), Dr. Enrico Radaelli(enrada@vet.upenn.edu), and Dr. Pedro Ruivo (prruivo@ucdavis.edu) before submitting amanuscript. Please submit abstracts for consideration by Monday, September 30, 2024. Upon
review, corresponding authors will be contacted via e-mail regarding the status of theirproposal(s) and the next steps.
Veterinary Pathology publishes basic and applied research involving domestic, laboratory, andzoo animals, wildlife, poultry, and other animals. The scope of the journal includes noveldescriptions of pathologic changes, clinical pathology and clinical-pathologic correlations fornatural and experimental diseases of animals, investigations of the molecular and cellularmechanisms of disease (general pathology) and other aspects of pathogenesis, descriptions anduse of animal models of human disease, and studies of pharmaceutical and environmental
hazards. Manuscripts considered for publication must:
1. have significant importance to animal and/or human health,
2. include new knowledge supported by valid data,
3. address disease mechanisms (pathogenesis, pathophysiology), or pathologic findings inimportant new or emerging diseases or clinicopathologic correlations,
4. AND be of sufficiently broad interest to be of substantial value to veterinary pathologists.