Swine models, genomic tools and services to enhance our understanding of human health and diseases

Abstract

The pig is becoming increasingly important as a biomedical model. Given the similarities between pigs and humans, a greater understanding of the underlying biology of human health and diseases may come from the pig rather than from classical rodent models. With an increasing need for swine models, it is essential that the genomic tools, models and services be readily available to the scientific community. Many of these are available through the National Swine Resource and Research Center (NSRRC), a facility funded by the US National Institutes of Health at the University of Missouri. The goal of the NSRRC is to provide high-quality biomedical swine models to the scientific community.

MTCH2 promotes adipogenesis in intramuscular preadipocytes via an m 6 A‐YTHDF1‐dependent mechanism

“…Pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus) are a common mammalian model because they share many physiologic similarities to humans, including metabolic diseases such as diabetes and obesity (26). Moreover, pig breeds vary in weight, growth rate, and reproductive performance, and these characters are useful for comparative studies (27).…”

Mesenchymal stem cell-derived extracellular vesicles attenuate influenza virus-induced acute lung injury in a pig model

“…Due to their close similarity in anatomy, physiology, and immunology to humans, pigs are used as a large animal preclinical model for several human diseases, including respiratory diseases and regenerative medicine [24,25]. In addition, pigs are naturally infected with influenza virus as the respiratory epithelium of pigs expresses receptors utilized by avian and mammalian influenza viruses [26].…”

Simple and reproducible approaches for the collection of select porcine ganglia

“…The implementation of the National Swine Resource and Research Center 10 and the increased recognition of the importance of porcine models is helping to close this gap. As more investigators embrace large animal models, this technical resource, along with additional emerging resources, will continue to enhance the research landscape.…”

“…This is due in part to the greater number of resources and tools available to rodent researchers. Therefore, developing and making available tools and resources for large animal models 10 might expand research programs utilizing large animal models and accelerate new research discoveries. This might be particularly relevant given the recent surge in neuroscience funding initiatives 11 .…”