These animal models include the reduction of renal mass by resecting 5/6 of the kidney, reduction of renal mass due to systemic diseases such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia or SLE, drug-induced FSGS using adriamycin, puromycin or streptozotocin, virus-induced FSGS, genetically-induced FSGS such as via Mpv-17 inactivation and α-actinin 4 and podocin knockouts, and a model for circulating permeability factors. Here, NPHS2 is linked to hyperlipidemia.