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Timing the doxycycline yields different patterns of genomic recombination in brain neurons with a new inducible Cre transgene
Author(s) -
Lindeberg J̇onas,
Mattsson Ragnar,
Ebendal Ted
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
journal of neuroscience research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.72
H-Index - 160
eISSN - 1097-4547
pISSN - 0360-4012
DOI - 10.1002/jnr.10213
Subject(s) - doxycycline , transgene , cre recombinase , biology , genetically modified mouse , site specific recombination , recombination , recombinase , genetics , microbiology and biotechnology , gene , antibiotics
We have developed a transgenic mouse expressing the Cre recombinase under control of a tetracycline‐responsive promoter. Using a CamKIIα‐driven tTA transgenic strain and a lacZ reporter mouse, we obtained the expected neuronal pattern of recombination in the olfactory lobe, cortex, striatum, hippocampus and Purkinje cells. Moreover, recombination can be completely abolished by feeding the mice doxycycline in their drinking water. We also show that it is possible to get a different pattern of recombination by changing the timing of the doxycycline‐mediated shutdown of Cre expression. By starting the doxycycline treatment at birth, we restrict recombination to striatum only. This approach should be applicable to other inducible transgenic strains, thus increasing the number of available tissue‐specific patterns for conditional knockouts. Also, our tetO‐Cre transgene can be combined with any of the increasing number of tetracycline transactivator transgenic strains to direct specifically inducible genomic recombination to several areas of the brain. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.