ABSTRACTOsteoarticular brucellosis is the most common complication inBrucella-infected humans regardless of age, sex, or immune status. The mechanism of bone destruction caused byBrucellaspecies remained partially unknown due to the lack of a suitable animal model. Here, to study this complication, we explored the suitability of the use of the NOD-scid IL2rγnullmouse to study osteoarticular brucellosis and examined the potential use of this strain to evaluate the safety of live attenuated vaccine candidates. Mice were inoculated intraperitoneally with a single dose of 1 × 104, 1 × 105, or 1 × 106CFU ofB. abortusS19 or the vaccine candidateB. abortusS19ΔvjbRand monitored for the development of side effects, including osteoarticular disease, for 13 weeks. Decreased body temperature, weight loss, splenomegaly, and deformation of the tails were observed in mice inoculated withB. abortusS19 but not in those inoculated with S19ΔvjbR. Histologically, all S19-inoculated mice had a severe dose-dependent inflammatory response in multiple organs. The inflammatory response at the tail was characterized by the recruitment of large numbers of neutrophils, macrophages, and osteoclasts with marked bone destruction. These lesions histologically resembled what is typically observed inBrucella-infected patients. In contrast, mice inoculated withB. abortusS19ΔvjbRdid not show significant bone changes. Immunofluorescence,in situhybridization, and confocal imaging demonstrated the presence ofBrucellaat the sites of inflammation, both intra- and extracellularly, and large numbers of bacteria were observed within mature osteoclasts. These results demonstrate the potential use of the NOD-scid IL2rγnullmouse model to evaluate vaccine safety and further study osteoarticular brucellosis.