Mouse models for immunologic diseases of the auditory system

Although the impact of the immune system on the middle and inner ear has been studied for half a century, the use of mice as experimental models is a relatively recent development. The virtual explosion in our understanding of the immune system in general over the past 25 years has made it possible to identify several immunologic mouse models that have application to the auditory system. As a result, most mouse research in auditory immunology has been conducted in the past two decades and their study is rapidly increasing. Most mouse models currently under investigation for auditory immunology have been standard models for decades in other fields of immunologic research, such as the systemic lupus erythematosus mouse models in autoimmune hearing loss (New Zealand Black, MRL/MpJ- Fas, C3H.MRL- Fas, and Palmerston North). As with other models of hearing research described elsewhere in this book, the consistent genotype of mouse inbred strains offers significant advantages to immunologic research as well. This not only permits reliable comparison of research results with one strain over time within a single laboratory, but also between laboratories. No other animal model offers this degree of immunologic consistency and comparability of study outcomes. An additional advantage of mouse immunologic models is that their genome is better understood than any other laboratory animal, thus facilitating correlation with human genes and diseases. Also, the ability to knock out (or in) specific mouse genes offers advantages for immunologic research that are unparalleled in other animal models.