Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn) sought to recapitulate key features of glioblastoma in a mouse model following unsuccessful attempts with other models. Co-authors of the study are part of the Comparative Pathology Core and Stem Cell and Xenograft Core, and the University of Pennsylvania’s Glioblastoma Multiforme Translational Center of Excellence, which seeks to create novel therapeutics to be used in glioblastoma studies, in part by establishing disease models that recapitulate key features of disease without succumbing to severe adverse events. Previous attempts to study glioblastoma using the NSG-SGM3 mouse failed; all humanized NSG-SGM3 mice died before glioblastoma engraftment. The scientists approached Taconic with their concerns and were presented with the NOG-EXL model, which was then used in subsequent studies to determine survivability. This study also allowed researchers to characterize myeloid cell hyperactivation, a biological process that severely limits the use of mouse models in long-term studies.