The generation of human neurofibromas in mice opens the door to testing new treatments
The Hereditary Cancer Group have published a study in Cell Reports in which they describe the generation of a model system based on induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) that is able to generate human neurofibromas in mice. These tumours arise in people with the genetic disease Neurofibromatosis Type 1, a prevalent condition occurring in one in every 3,000 people. To date, a robust method for generating human neurofibromas in mice has been lacking, and the model developed opens up the possibility of testing new treatments for these tumours.