Genetic inversion in mast cell-deficient Wsh mice interrupts corin and manifests as hematopoietic and cardiac aberrancy

Abstract

Mast cells participate in pathophysiological processes that range from antimicrobial defense to anaphylaxis and inflammatory arthritis. Much of the groundwork for the understanding of mast cells was established in mice that lacked mast cells through defects in either stem cell factor or its receptor, Kit. Among available strains, C57BL/6-KitW-sh (Wsh) mice are experimentally advantageous because of their background strain and fertility. However, the genetic inversion responsible for the Wsh phenotype remains poorly defined, and its effects beyond the mast cell have been incompletely characterized. We report that Wsh animals exhibit splenomegaly with expanded myeloid and megakaryocyte populat..