A progressive skin disease causing hair loss in adult humans was identified in laboratory mice, providing a genetic tool to study the disease known as alopecia areata (AA). “Our mouse model has proven to be very useful as a preclinical model to test new treatments for alopecia areata before being used in humans,” states lead researcher, John P. Sundberg, D.V.M., Ph.D., of The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine. The study further provided the opportunity to use newly available gene array technology to study AA’s molecular mechanisms.In this 5-year study, published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, researchers identified a virtually identical mouse model for human adult onset AA and were able to reproduce the disease for exploring treatments. Data revealed that the disease has a complicated genetic basis that involves 4 or more genes. These genes include those involved in susceptibility to the disease and genes that regulate pigmentation of the skin and hair.
