Immunodeficient & Nude Mouse Models

Immunodeficient animal models are characterized by a partial or complete lack of functional immune responses, resulting from genetic mutations or engineered alterations that impair components of the immune system. These models are widely used in biomedical research to study immunology, oncology, infectious diseases, and transplantation. Their reduced immune activity enables the engraftment of allogeneic or xenogeneic cells and tissues, supporting in vivo evaluation of therapeutic candidates, including drugs, biologics, and vaccines.

In addition, immunodeficient models provide a platform to investigate mechanisms of immune dysfunction and host-pathogen interactions, as well as to develop and study humanized systems for translational research. A range of models are available with varying degrees of immune impairment, from partial deficiencies to severely compromised systems, supporting diverse applications such as tumor engraftment, cell therapy evaluation, and reconstitution with human immune cells.

The Jackson Laboratory offers a variety of immunodeficient mouse models, from slightly immunocompromised (NU/J and J:NU) to extremely immunodeficient (NOD scid gamma and NOD Rag gamma), enabling a range of experimental procedures from murine cancer cell line engraftment to immune-humanization with CD34+ hematopoietic stem cells and PBMCs.

Ask an Expert about Immunodeficient Mice

The Jackson Laboratory - Immunodeficient & Nude Mouse Models

Compare Immunodeficient & Nude Research Models

Strain Names	Mature B Cells	Mature T Cells	Dendritic Cells	Macrophages	Natural Killer Cells	Complement*	Leakiness**
J:NU (007850) (outbred)	Present	Absent	Present	Present	Present	Present	N/A
NU/J (002019) (inbred)	Present	Absent	Present	Present	Present	Present	N/A
B6 Rag1 KO (002216)	Absent	Absent	Present	Present	Present	Present	Absent
B6 Rag2 KO (008449)	Absent	Absent	Present	Present	Present	Present	Absent
BALB/c scid (001803)	Absent	Absent	Present	Present	Present	Present	Moderate
C57BL/6 scid (001913)	Absent	Absent	Present	Present	Present	Present	Moderate
NOD scid (001303)	Absent	Absent	Defective	Defective	Defective	Absent	Very Low
NOD scid gamma (005557)	Absent	Absent	Low	Low	Absent	Absent	Absent
NOD Rag gamma (007799)	Absent	Absent	Defective	Defective	Absent	Absent	Very Low

*Complement - absent complement system means mice are more susceptible to pathogens and increased health barrier standards should be used for housing the mice.

**Immune leakiness - refers to the incomplete or unstable loss of immune function in an immunodeficient model, where some immune cells or immune activity persist or re-emerge despite an intended deficiency.

Immunodeficient & Nude Research Model Details

Strain Names	Model Benefits	Strain Considerations
J:NU (007850) Outbred Athymic Nude NU/J (002019) Inbred Athymic Nude	Most sensitive host for cancer stem cells when compared to NOD Longer lifespan than NOD scid; supports long-term engraftment studies and capabilities; >89 weeks median	No thymic lymphomas, can be used for long & short-term experiments Sensitive to irradiation
Rag1 KO (002216)	Radiation resistant, providing an alternative to scid mutants Permits adoptive transfer from strains on B6 background, enabling the study of cell function and tracking of cell movement	Innate immunity intact Poor host for primary cell transplantation
Rag2 KO (008449)	Radiation resistant, providing an alternative to scid mutants Permits adoptive transfer from strains on B6 background, enabling the study of cell function and tracking of cell movement	Innate immunity intact Poor host for primary cell transplantation
Balb/c scid (001803)	Engrafts the widest range of solid and hematological cancers, including ALL and AML Most sensitive host for cancer stem cells when compared to NOD Longer lifespan than NOD scid; supports long-term engraftment studies and capabilities; >89 weeks median	No thymic lymphomas, can be used for long & short-term experiments Sensitive to irradiation
B6 scid (001913)	Allows engraftment of allogeneic, xenogeneic, and hematopoietic cancer cell lines similarly to BALB/c scid Shares C57BL/6 background with thousands of other strains allowing for crossbreeding and data comparisons Improved engraftment efficiency compared to nude models for some cell lines	Innate immunity remains intact NK cell activity limits engraftment of some primary cells and tissues
NOD scid (001303)	Allows allogeneic and xenogeneic cancer cell lines & tissues Engrafts hematopoietic cancer cell lines, some primary cells Improvements in engraftment efficiency over nude models for some cancer cell lines	Innate immunity intact NK cell activity limits engraftment
NSG® (005557)	Higher take-rates for slow-growing cancer cell lines than BALB scid or nude xenograft models Xenotransplantation of some solid human tumors	Develops thymic lymphomas by 8-9 months of age ~36 weeks mean survival
NRG (007799)	Does not have scid-associated sensitivity to irradiation Long-term multilineage hematopoietic stem cell repopulation similar to NSG® mice Engrafts human PBMC without irradiation similar to NSG® Engrafts a wide range of solid and hematological cancers	No thymic lymphomas—can be used for long-term experiments Requires higher dose of irradiation to obtain human HSC engraftment