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1From the Departments of Biochemistry and 3Anatomy, the University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, SAR, China; and the 4Mouse Cancer Genetics Program, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Frederick, Maryland.
PURPOSE. To establish a transgenic mouse line that expresses Cre-recombinase in retinal rod bipolar cells for the generation of rod bipolar cell-specific knockout mutants.
METHODS. The IRES-Cre-cDNA fragment was inserted into a 173-kb bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) carrying the intact Pcp2 gene, by using red-mediated recombineering. Transgenic mice were generated with the modified BAC and identified. The Cre-transgenic mice were crossed with ROSA26 and Z/EG reporter mice to detect Cre-recombinase activity.
RESULTS. X-gal staining showed that strong Cre-recombinase activities were present in retinal inner nuclear layers and cerebellar Purkinje cells. Double staining with an anti-GFP antibody and an anti-PKC
antibody (specific for retinal rod bipolar cells) revealed that Cre-recombinase activity localized exclusively to the rod bipolar cells in the retina.
CONCLUSIONS. A mouse BAC-Pcp2-IRES-Cre transgenic line that expresses Cre-recombinase in retinal rod bipolar neurons has been established. Because mutations in some ubiquitously expressed genes may result in retinal degenerative diseases, the mouse strain BAC-Pcp2-IRES-Cre will be a useful new tool for investigating the effects of retinal rod bipolar cell-specific gene inactivation.
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Y. Xu, P. Sulaiman, R. M. Feddersen, J. Liu, R. G. Smith, and N. Vardi Retinal ON Bipolar Cells Express a New PCP2 Splice Variant That Accelerates the Light Response J. Neurosci., September 3, 2008; 28(36): 8873 - 8884. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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