Taconic Biosciences, a leading provider of genetically modified mouse models and associated services to researchers worldwide, has launched the huNOG-EXL, an extended lineage mouse model that will greatly improve immuno-oncology, allergy and inflammation research.

Available exclusively from Taconic, the huNOG-EXL incorporates an engrafted human immune system to recapitulate myeloid lineages that are known to play a key role in innate immune responses, resulting in a more complete reflection of human immunity.

“The huNOG-EXL is a major advancement with the potential to greatly enhance researchers’ understanding of how human immune response impacts disease and how it can be leveraged to develop targeted therapies,” said Dr. Michael Seiler, Associate Director, Genetically Engineered Models Design and Precision Research Models, Taconic Biosciences. “The huNOG-EXL provides a much clearer representation of human immune response and reflects years of development of new in vivo rodent models with more complete immune development, enabling investigators to perform studies that were not feasible in the past.”

The huNOG-EXL combines the background of the CIEA NOG mouse with transgenic low-level expression of two human cytokines (GM-CSF and IL-3), both known to limit myeloid lineage commitment due to cross-species limitations. Upon engraftment with human hematopoietic stem cells, the hGM-CSF/hIL3 transgenic-NOG host results in a human-like immune system that includes mature granulocytes, monocytes, macrophages, B cells and T cells, extending the limits of existing engrafted human immune system models. This precision research model enables the study of key innate mechanisms with direct correlates to safety and efficacy, and is especially useful for immuno-oncology applications.

“The extended reconstitution of immune cell lineages of the huNOG-EXL will allow improved modeling of the complex, heterogeneous tumor micro-environment by favoring the differentiation of cells that can infiltrate the tumour and participate in the immuno-modulatory tumour niche, all of which are high-value targets for immuno-oncology drug discovery,” Seiler said. Because the huNOG-EXL is more reflective of innate human immunity than previously available models, it will enable better predictability of clinical outcomes and help speed time-to-market with efficacious therapies.