Chapter 4 - Spontaneous and Experimentally Induced Autoimmune Diseases in Nonhuman Primates

Abstract

Autoimmune diseases represent a group of immune-mediated inflammatory disorders that are driven by an unwanted hyperactivity of the immune system. The prevalence of the different types of autoimmune disease differs, but collectively they affect between 15 and 25 million individuals in the USA. They are often characterized by chronic inflammation, which can either be systemic or confined to one of a few organs. The chronic inflammation can lead to a spectrum of mild to severe clinical conditions depending on the organ/system targeted by the autoimmune response. The chronic nature of autoimmune diseases and the often invalidating consequences result not only in personal tragedy but also high medical and socioeconomic costs. The common marmoset is prone to a naturally occurring inflammatory condition called Marmoset Wasting Syndrome. Lentivirus infection leads to a general dysfunction of the immune system in humans (human immunodeficiency virus, HIV) and in rhesus monkeys (simian immunodeficiency virus, SIV). The immune dysregulation leads to the production of autoantibodies and autoimmune responses contributing to the pathogenesis of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis in nonhuman primates is used as a preclinical model of multiple sclerosis. The rhesus monkey model of collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) was originally developed as a preclinical model of rheumatoid arthritis in adults.