Flaky tail mouse denotes human atopic dermatitis in the steady state and by topical application with Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus extract

The barrier abnormality, a loss-of-function mutation in the gene encoding filaggrin (FLG), which is linked to the incidence of atopic dermatitis (AD), is a recently discovered but important factor in the pathogenesis of AD. Flaky tail (Flg^ft) mice, essentially deficient in filaggrin, have been used to investigate the role of filaggrin on AD. However, the relevancy of Flg ^ft mice to human AD needs to be determined further. In this study, we observed the clinical manifestations of Flg^ft mice in the steady state and their cutaneous immune responses against external stimuli, favoring human AD. Under specific pathogen-free conditions, the majority of Flg ^ft mice developed clinical and histological eczematous skin lesions similar to human AD with outside-to-inside skin barrier dysfunction evaluated by newly devised methods. In addition, cutaneous hapten-induced contact hypersensitivity as a model of acquired immune response and a mite extract-induced dermatitis model physiologically relevant to a human AD were enhanced in Flg^ft mice. These results suggest that the Flg ^ft mouse genotype has potential as an animal model of AD corresponding with filaggrin mutation in human AD.