Autoimmunity's next top models

Animal models are indispensable for studying disease pathogenesis and discovering new treatments for human organ-specific autoimmune diseases. However, there is a need of more refined paradigms for these models. Ideally, a small-animal model should represent the clinical features of human disease in their entirety. Disease in the animals should develop spontaneously, should be followed over an extended period of time and should involve the genetic, molecular and cellular elements that contribute to human pathogenesis.