Bat-mouse bone marrow chimera: a novel animal model for dissecting the uniqueness of the bat immune system

Yong, Kylie Su Mei; Ng, Justin Han Jia; Her, Zhisheng; Hey, Ying Ying; Tan, Sue Yee; Tan, Wilson Wei Sheng; Irac, Sergio Erdal; Liu, Min; Chan, Xue Ying; Gunawan, Merry; Foo, Randy Jee Hiang; Low, Dolyce Hong Wen; Mendenhall, Ian Hewitt; Chionh, Yok Teng; Dutertre, Charles-Antoine; Chen, Qingfeng; Wang, Lin-Fa

In conclusion, while we are fully aware that bat research is only at its infancy, we are still facing an uphill battle to generate bat-specific research tools, especially antibodies. The novel bat-mouse model generated in this study represents a major technical advancement in recent years and we are confident that this will accelerate many aspects of bat research internationally in the near future. Moreover, the additional discovery that bat BM cells can be successfully engrafted without graft rejection is highly significant on two accounts. One, this unexpected discovery may represent one of the strongest evidence obtained to date in support of the notion that there is immune tolerance or a dampened innate defence system in bats. Two, this unique phenomenon, which is not typically seen in mainstream immunological studies of other mammals may open a new area for the study of immunity in unique species and create new opportunities to address human health issues. Together, this would not only allow a better understanding of bat immune responses to diseases and vaccines, but also for testing immunomodulators and exploring mechanisms in infection and neoplasia.