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Transgenic rabbit models for cardiac disease research.
Tibor Hornyik1,2, Marina Rieder1, Alessandro Castiglione1
1Translational Cardiology, Department of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, and Institute of Physiology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
British Journal of Pharmacology
|April 6, 2021
Summary
Rabbits offer a superior preclinical model for human cardiac disease research due to their physiological similarities. This review explores generating transgenic rabbits and their use in studying monogenic heart conditions.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Research
- Translational Medicine
- Animal Models
Background:
- In vitro models lack human heart complexity.
- Mice models have limitations in cardiac research due to physiological differences.
- Rabbits possess cardiac characteristics closer to humans.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review methods for creating transgenic rabbits for cardiac research.
- To detail existing transgenic rabbit models for monogenic cardiac diseases.
- To assess their utility in understanding disease mechanisms and treatments.
Main Methods:
- Discussion of transgenic rabbit generation techniques: pronuclear microinjection, Sleeping Beauty transposon system, and genome editing (ZFN, CRISPR/Cas9).
- Review of available transgenic rabbit models for specific monogenic cardiac diseases.
Main Results:
- Transgenic rabbit models provide better insights into human cardiac pathophysiology than mouse models.
- These models are valuable for studying long QT syndrome, short QT syndrome, and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
- They aid in understanding disease mechanisms and testing novel therapeutic strategies.
Conclusions:
- Transgenic rabbits are a highly suitable animal model for human cardiac disease research.
- These models advance the understanding of cardiac disease pathophysiology.
- They facilitate the development and testing of new treatment options for heart conditions.
