Animal models for pathogenic Neisseria species

The development and use of various animal models in the early 1970s helped renew interest in the immunobiology of Neisseria gonorrhoeae and N. meningitidis.This research also provoked controversy concerning which infection model provided the most useful information.Certainly, the human host or isolated organ cultures provided a relevant test system for neisserial infections; however, these models were not accessible to many research groups, and, therefore, alternative models were necessary for preliminary studies.If some discretion is exercised in selecting an appropriate species and in interpreting the results, much useful informa- tion can be obtained by studying these sometimes contrived model systems.The question regarding what constitutes a