Evaluation tools and animal models of peripheral neuropathies

Peripheral neuropathies are common and frequently debilitating disorders linked to degeneration of peripheral nerves that supply mainly the distal muscles of the extremities. Due to the diverse origin of the pathology (genetic, systemic or environmental), peripheral neuropathies exhibit different clinical forms: acute or chronic, symmetrical or asymmetrical, demyelinating or axonal. In the last 30 years, to gain insight into cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying neuropathies, numerous animal models--either spontaneous or induced by chemical compounds, physical injury or genetic engineering--have been extensively developed and used. In this review, we present (1) the methods used to assess the peripheral neuropathies in the major available animal models and their main pathological characteristics and (2) the main models and their relevance to the human pathology, and, consequently, their usefulness for preclinical studies. Finally, we discuss the emerging, recently developed tools, that should allow to gain a better insight into the mechanisms underlying the peripheral neuropathies.