ACR Convergence 2025
GemPharmatech had a fantastic time returning to the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Convergence 2025! We are grateful to everyone who met us to discuss our expanding portfolio of autoimmune disease models and preclinical research capabilities!
It was a pleasure for our scientific team to share new findings that highlight the versatility of our autoimmune and humanized mouse models. From psoriatic arthritis to systemic lupus erythematosus and B-cell biology, our studies show how our expertise and advanced models help deliver deeper insights into immune mechanisms and support translational pharmacology.
We were honored to have been selected to give an oral presentation during the conference!
“The Application of SLE Patient-derived PBMC-induced Mouse Model in Preclinical Pharmacological Studies”
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a complex autoimmune disease where current animal models fail to fully mimic the pathogenesis. To address this, GemPharmatech has developed a humanized SLE mouse model by transferring PBMCs from SLE patients into immunodeficient mice (NCG mice).This model successfully produces key disease characteristics, including high levels of human auto-antibodies and renal immune complex deposition. Furthermore, this model responded to B-cell directed therapeutic antibodies, which demonstrates its value and potential in evaluating novel therapeutic modalities.
Contact us to request the presentation slides.
In addition to our scientific presentation, GemPharmatech scientists showcased three scientific posters, highlighting our latest R&D outcomes.
“Application of Psoriatic Arthritis Mouse Models in Preclinical Pharmacodynamic Evaluation”
Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a complex inflammatory disorder that affects up to 30% of psoriasis patients. Its heterogeneous clinical manifestations and lack of standardized diagnostic criteria pose significant challenges for therapy development. Although targeted therapies have advanced in recent years, the unclear pathogenesis and patient variability highlight the need for robust preclinical models. To address this, we established two inducible PsA mouse models designed to support drug efficacy testing and accelerate therapeutic innovation.
“Phenotypic and Transcriptomic Divergence in C3 Glomerular Mouse Models: Insights into Immune and Sex Correlates”
Complement component C3 is central to the alternative pathway (AP) and plays a key role in the pathogenesis of C3 glomerulopathy (C3G), a rare renal disease characterized by complement dysregulation. To model human-specific complement activity, we developed two humanized C3 mouse models: B6-hC3 (expressing a human C3 transgene) and B6-hC3 mC3 KO (expressing a human C3 transgene with knockout of mouse C3). These models were designed to promote unregulated C3 activation of the alternative pathway (AP) and reproduce C3G-like phenotypes. Through longitudinal phenotyping and RNA sequencing, we sought to elucidate molecular mechanisms underlying disease development and investigate sex-associated gene expression signatures.
“A Novel Preclinical Tool for Evaluating CD20 Antibody Efficacy Based on BAFF/CD20 Dual-target Humanized Mice”
CD20, a well-characterized B-cell surface marker, is central to B-cell activation and differentiation. In addition, it contributes to the pathogenesis of B-cell-mediated diseases, including lymphomas, rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Due to its selective expression on B cells, CD20 is an attractive target for therapeutic antibodies. Previously, we established an SLE model in transgenic mouse strains overexpressing human BAFF on a C57BL/6 mouse background (B6-hBAFF, T036794). To extend this platform for CD20-targeted drug evaluation, we generated a dual-humanized model by crossing B6-hBAFF with CD20 humanized mice (BALB/c-hCD20, T057498), resulting in the BAFF/CD20 dual-humanized mice (T065937).
Want to guarantee time to talk with our experts? Email us at sales@gempharmatech.com to schedule a one-on-one meeting. Our scientific and business development team is ready to discuss your research needs, model customization options, and preclinical study design considerations.
Learn More on GemPharmatech’s Autoimmune Disease Models and Preclinical Service Platform:
Explore one of the world’s most comprehensive autoimmune disease research platforms. GemPharmatech’s preclinical services integrate advanced genetically engineered mouse models with validated efficacy testing workflows for SLE, rheumatoid arthritis, IBD, psoriasis, and other immune-mediated disorders. Discover how our models and IND-supporting data packages can accelerate your autoimmune drug development pipeline.
Additional Autoimmune Disease Resources from GemPharmatech:
We invite you to explore our featured scientific posters and on-demand resources below to learn how GemPharmatech’s humanized and disease-specific mouse models can accelerate your discovery and development programs.
View Our 2024 ACR Poster Resources:
"Humanized BAFF Transgenic Mice Develop Autoimmune Manifestations"
Overexpression of human BAFF in transgenic mice induces spontaneous lupus-like symptoms, including elevated autoantibodies and renal pathology. This poster highlights how GemPharmatech’s hBAFF model provides a translationally relevant tool for evaluating B-cell-targeted therapies such as anti-BAFF and anti-CD20 antibodies.
"Phenotypic Validation of Humanized IgA1 and CD89 Transgenic Mice as a Model for IgA Nephropathy-Like Autoimmune Disease"
This poster presents validation data demonstrating how humanized IgA1 and CD89 transgenic mice replicate key clinical hallmarks of IgA nephropathy, including immune complex deposition and renal injury. The findings support their use in evaluating novel therapeutic approaches for antibody-mediated kidney diseases.
On-Demand webinar:
Targeted B-Cell Therapies: Challenges and Preclinical Evaluation Considerations for Repurposing from Oncology to Autoimmunity
Join GemPharmatech’s Dr. Juan Liang as she discusses translational challenges in applying oncology-derived B-cell-targeted therapeutics to autoimmune indications. The session covers key considerations for preclinical study design, including model selection, efficacy assessment, and mechanisms of resistance.