Chapter 3 - Experimentalautoimmune encephalomyelitis

Summary

This chapter discusses the development of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) and reviews the clinical, immunological, and pathological aspects of different models. Induction of EAE relies on the generation of autoreactive T cells. The disease course, severity, and pathological features observed in the CNS are dependent on the choice of autoantigen and adjuvant, as well as the species, strain, gender, and age of the animals. EAE has greatly contributed to drug development in MS; however, therapies effective in EAE have not always translated to the clinic. To specifically address EAE studies, Vesterinen and colleagues reviewed 1117 publications on EAE therapies concluding that few studies report measures of quality. Thus to improve conclusions drawn from EAE studies, and better translation to MS, a checklist incorporating the Animals in Research: Reporting in Vivo Experiments (ARRIVE) guidelines, principles of the Reduction, Refinement, and Replacement (3Rs), and elements uncovered by Vesterinen's study should be used.