Authors: Feldman, Eva L.; Sullivan, Kelli A.; Lentz, Stephen I.; Roberts Jr., John L.

Source: Current Drug Targets, Volume 9, Number 1, January 2008 , pp. 3-13(11)

Publisher: Bentham Science Publishers

Abstract:

Diabetic neuropathy (DN) is a serious and debilitating complication of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Despite intense research efforts into multiple aspects of this complication, including both vascular and neuronal metabolic derangements, the only treatment remains maintenance of euglycemia. Basic research into the mechanisms responsible for DN relies on using the most appropriate animal model. The advent of genetic manipulation has moved mouse models of human disease to the forefront. The ability to insert or delete genes affected in human patients offers unique insight into disease processes; however, mice are still not humans and difficulties remain in interpreting data derived from these animals. A number of studies have investigated and described DN in mice but it is difficult to compare these studies with each other or with human DN due to experimental differences including background strain, type of diabetes, method of induction and duration of diabetes, animal age and gender. This review describes currently used DN animal models. We followed a standardized diabetes induction protocol and designed and implemented a set of phenotyping parameters to classify the development and severity of DN. By applying standard protocols, we hope to facilitate the comparison and characterization of DN across different background strains in the hope of discovering the most human like model in which to test potential therapies.

Keywords: NOD; Akita; ob/ob; db/db; outbred mice; nerve conduction velocity; intraepidermal nerve fiber density

Document Type: Research article

Publication date: 2008-01-01

More about this publication?

• Current Drug Targets aims to cover the latest and most outstanding developments on the medicinal chemistry and pharmacology of molecular drug targets e.g. disease specific proteins, receptors, enzymes, genes. Each issue of the journal will be devoted to a single timely topic, with series of in-depth reviews, written by leaders in the field, covering a range of current topics on drug targets. These issues will be organized and led by a guest editor who is a recognized expert in the overall topic. As the discovery, identification, characterisation and validation of novel human drug targets for drug discovery continues to grow; this journal will be essential reading for all pharmaceutical scientists involved in drug discovery and development.

Related content

• In this: publication
• By this: publisher
• In this Subject: Pharmacology
• By this author: Feldman, Eva L. ;  Sullivan, Kelli A. ;  Lentz, Stephen I. ;  Roberts Jr., John L.

Website © Publishing Technology. Article copyright remains with the publisher, society or author(s) as specified within the article.

• Terms and conditions
• Privacy policy
• Information for advertisers