Knockout mouse model is a laboratory mouse in which researchers have inactivated, or "knocked out," an existing gene by deleting portions of the gene’s DNA sequence, or by replacing the gene with an altered DNA sequence. Knockout mice exhibit modifications in phenotype (observable traits) and thereby provide important clues about the function of individual genes. Mice and humans share many genes in common. Hence, information from knockout mouse models can shed light on the biological roles of specific genes as well as on the involvement of those genes in human disease.
