Journal
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
Volume 402, Issue 1, Pages 3-16Publisher
ACADEMIC PRESS INC ELSEVIER SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2015.02.022
Keywords
Neural crest cell; Mef2C enhancer (Mef2c-F10N); beta-galactosidase reporter (LacZ); Cre recombinase
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Funding
- Stowers Institute for Medical Research
- National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research [DE-16082]
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Neural crest cells (NCC) comprise a multipotent, migratory stem cell and progenitor population that gives rise to numerous cell and tissue types within a developing embryo, including craniofacial bone and cartilage, neurons and glia of the peripheral nervous system, and melanocytes within the skin. Here we describe two novel stable transgenic mouse lines suitable for lineage tracing and analysis of gene function in NCC. Firstly, using the F10N enhancer of the Mef2c gene (Mef2c-F10N) linked to LacZ, we generated transgenic mice (Mef2c-F10N-LacZ) that express LacZ in the majority, if not all migrating NCC that delaminate from the neural tube. Mef2c-F10N-LacZ then continues to be expressed primarily in neurogenic, gliogenic and melanocytic NCC and their derivatives, but not in ectomesenchymal derivatives. Secondly, we used the same Mef2c-F10N enhancer together with Cre recombinase to generate transgenic mice (Mef2c-F10N-Cre) that can be used to indelibly label, or alter gene function in, migrating NCC and their derivatives. At early stages of development, Mef2c-F10N-LacZ and Mef2c-F10NCre label NCC in a pattern similar to Wnt1-Cre mice, with the exception that Mef2c-F10N-LacZ and Mef2cF10N-Cre specifically label NCC that have delaminated from the neural plate, while premigratory NCC are not labeled. Thus, our Mef2c-F10N-LacZ and Mef2c-F10N-Cre transgenic mice provide new resources for tracing migratory NCC and analyzing gene function in migrating and differentiating NCC independently of NCC formation. (C) 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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