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Kocherlakota S, Baes M. Benefits and Caveats in the Use of Retinal Pigment Epithelium-Specific Cre Mice. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:1293. [PMID: 38279294 PMCID: PMC10816505 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25021293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2023] [Revised: 01/16/2024] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 01/28/2024] Open
Abstract
The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is an important monolayer of cells present in the outer retina, forming a major part of the blood-retina barrier (BRB). It performs many tasks essential for the maintenance of retinal integrity and function. With increasing knowledge of the retina, it is becoming clear that both common retinal disorders, like age-related macular degeneration, and rare genetic disorders originate in the RPE. This calls for a better understanding of the functions of various proteins within the RPE. In this regard, mice enabling an RPE-specific gene deletion are a powerful tool to study the role of a particular protein within the RPE cells in their native environment, simultaneously negating any potential influences of systemic changes. Moreover, since RPE cells interact closely with adjacent photoreceptors, these mice also provide an excellent avenue to study the importance of a particular gene function within the RPE to the retina as a whole. In this review, we outline and compare the features of various Cre mice created for this purpose, which allow for inducible or non-inducible RPE-specific knockout of a gene of interest. We summarize the various benefits and caveats involved in the use of such mouse lines, allowing researchers to make a well-informed decision on the choice of Cre mouse to use in relation to their research needs.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Myriam Baes
- Laboratory of Cell Metabolism, Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
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2
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Kretschmer V, Schneider S, Matthiessen PA, Reichert D, Hotaling N, Glasßer G, Lieberwirth I, Bharti K, De Cegli R, Conte I, Nandrot EF, May-Simera HL. Deletion of IFT20 exclusively in the RPE ablates primary cilia and leads to retinal degeneration. PLoS Biol 2023; 21:e3002402. [PMID: 38048369 PMCID: PMC10721183 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2022] [Revised: 12/14/2023] [Accepted: 10/26/2023] [Indexed: 12/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Vision impairment places a serious burden on the aging society, affecting the lives of millions of people. Many retinal diseases are of genetic origin, of which over 50% are due to mutations in cilia-associated genes. Most research on retinal degeneration has focused on the ciliated photoreceptor cells of the retina. However, the contribution of primary cilia in other ocular cell types has largely been ignored. The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is a monolayer epithelium at the back of the eye intricately associated with photoreceptors and essential for visual function. It is already known that primary cilia in the RPE are critical for its development and maturation; however, it remains unclear whether this affects RPE function and retinal tissue homeostasis. We generated a conditional knockout mouse model, in which IFT20 is exclusively deleted in the RPE, ablating primary cilia. This leads to defective RPE function, followed by photoreceptor degeneration and, ultimately, vision impairment. Transcriptomic analysis offers insights into mechanisms underlying pathogenic changes, which include transcripts related to epithelial homeostasis, the visual cycle, and phagocytosis. Due to the loss of cilia exclusively in the RPE, this mouse model enables us to tease out the functional role of RPE cilia and their contribution to retinal degeneration, providing a powerful tool for basic and translational research in syndromic and non-syndromic retinal degeneration. Non-ciliary mechanisms of IFT20 in the RPE may also contribute to pathogenesis and cannot be excluded, especially considering the increasing evidence of non-ciliary functions of ciliary proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Viola Kretschmer
- Faculty of Biology, Institute of Molecular Physiology, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Sandra Schneider
- Faculty of Biology, Institute of Molecular Physiology, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Peter Andreas Matthiessen
- Faculty of Biology, Institute of Molecular Physiology, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
| | - Dominik Reichert
- Faculty of Biology, Institute of Molecular Physiology, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
- National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Nathan Hotaling
- National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Gunnar Glasßer
- Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, Mainz, Germany
| | | | - Kapil Bharti
- National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Rossella De Cegli
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli, Italy
| | - Ivan Conte
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli, Italy
- University of Naples “Federico II”, Naples, Italy
| | | | - Helen Louise May-Simera
- Faculty of Biology, Institute of Molecular Physiology, Johannes Gutenberg-University, Mainz, Germany
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3
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Zengel J, Wang YX, Seo JW, Ning K, Hamilton JN, Wu B, Raie M, Holbrook C, Su S, Clements DR, Pillay S, Puschnik AS, Winslow MM, Idoyaga J, Nagamine CM, Sun Y, Mahajan VB, Ferrara KW, Blau HM, Carette JE. Hardwiring tissue-specific AAV transduction in mice through engineered receptor expression. Nat Methods 2023; 20:1070-1081. [PMID: 37291262 PMCID: PMC10333121 DOI: 10.1038/s41592-023-01896-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2022] [Accepted: 04/25/2023] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The development of transgenic mouse models that express genes of interest in specific cell types has transformed our understanding of basic biology and disease. However, generating these models is time- and resource-intensive. Here we describe a model system, SELective Expression and Controlled Transduction In Vivo (SELECTIV), that enables efficient and specific expression of transgenes by coupling adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors with Cre-inducible overexpression of the multi-serotype AAV receptor, AAVR. We demonstrate that transgenic AAVR overexpression greatly increases the efficiency of transduction of many diverse cell types, including muscle stem cells, which are normally refractory to AAV transduction. Superior specificity is achieved by combining Cre-mediated AAVR overexpression with whole-body knockout of endogenous Aavr, which is demonstrated in heart cardiomyocytes, liver hepatocytes and cholinergic neurons. The enhanced efficacy and exquisite specificity of SELECTIV has broad utility in development of new mouse model systems and expands the use of AAV for gene delivery in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- James Zengel
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Yu Xin Wang
- Baxter Laboratory for Stem Cell Biology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Center for Genetic Disorders and Aging, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Jai Woong Seo
- Department of Radiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Ke Ning
- Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - James N Hamilton
- Baxter Laboratory for Stem Cell Biology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Bo Wu
- Department of Radiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Marina Raie
- Department of Radiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Colin Holbrook
- Baxter Laboratory for Stem Cell Biology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Shiqi Su
- Baxter Laboratory for Stem Cell Biology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Derek R Clements
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Immunology Program, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Sirika Pillay
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Andreas S Puschnik
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Monte M Winslow
- Department of Genetics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Juliana Idoyaga
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Immunology Program, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Claude M Nagamine
- Department of Comparative Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Yang Sun
- Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Palo Alto Veterans Administration, Palo Alto, CA, USA
| | - Vinit B Mahajan
- Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Palo Alto Veterans Administration, Palo Alto, CA, USA
| | - Katherine W Ferrara
- Department of Radiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Helen M Blau
- Baxter Laboratory for Stem Cell Biology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Jan E Carette
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.
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4
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Sun MR, Steward AC, Sweet EA, Martin AA, Lipinski RJ. Developmental malformations resulting from high-dose maternal tamoxifen exposure in the mouse. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0256299. [PMID: 34403436 PMCID: PMC8370643 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0256299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2021] [Accepted: 08/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Tamoxifen is an estrogen receptor (ER) ligand with widespread use in clinical and basic research settings. Beyond its application in treating ER-positive cancer, tamoxifen has been co-opted into a powerful approach for temporal-specific genetic alteration. The use of tamoxifen-inducible Cre-recombinase mouse models to examine genetic, molecular, and cellular mechanisms of development and disease is now prevalent in biomedical research. Understanding off-target effects of tamoxifen will inform its use in both clinical and basic research applications. Here, we show that prenatal tamoxifen exposure can cause structural birth defects in the mouse. Administration of a single 200 mg/kg tamoxifen dose to pregnant wildtype C57BL/6J mice at gestational day 9.75 caused cleft palate and limb malformations in the fetuses, including posterior digit duplication, reduction, or fusion. These malformations were highly penetrant and consistent across independent chemical manufacturers. As opposed to 200 mg/kg, a single dose of 50 mg/kg tamoxifen at the same developmental stage did not result in overt structural malformations. Demonstrating that prenatal tamoxifen exposure at a specific time point causes dose-dependent developmental abnormalities, these findings argue for more considerate application of tamoxifen in Cre-inducible systems and further investigation of tamoxifen’s mechanisms of action.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miranda R. Sun
- Department of Comparative Biosciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States of America
| | - Austin C. Steward
- Department of Comparative Biosciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States of America
| | - Emma A. Sweet
- Department of Comparative Biosciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States of America
| | - Alexander A. Martin
- Department of Comparative Biosciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States of America
| | - Robert J. Lipinski
- Department of Comparative Biosciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Choi EH, Suh S, Einstein DE, Leinonen H, Dong Z, Rao SR, Fliesler SJ, Blackshaw S, Yu M, Peachey NS, Palczewski K, Kiser PD. An inducible Cre mouse for studying roles of the RPE in retinal physiology and disease. JCI Insight 2021; 6:146604. [PMID: 33784255 PMCID: PMC8262343 DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.146604] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2020] [Accepted: 03/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) provides vital metabolic support for retinal photoreceptor cells and is an important player in numerous retinal diseases. Gene manipulation in mice using the Cre-LoxP system is an invaluable tool for studying the genetic basis of these retinal diseases. However, existing RPE-targeted Cre mouse lines have critical limitations that restrict their reliability for studies of disease pathogenesis and treatment, including mosaic Cre expression, inducer-independent activity, off-target Cre expression, and intrinsic toxicity. Here, we report the generation and characterization of a knockin mouse line in which a P2A-CreERT2 coding sequence is fused with the native RPE-specific 65 kDa protein (Rpe65) gene for cotranslational expression of CreERT2. Cre+/– mice were able to recombine a stringent Cre reporter allele with more than 99% efficiency and absolute RPE specificity upon tamoxifen induction at both postnatal days (PD) 21 and 50. Tamoxifen-independent Cre activity was negligible at PD64. Moreover, tamoxifen-treated Cre+/– mice displayed no signs of structural or functional retinal pathology up to 4 months of age. Despite weak RPE65 expression from the knockin allele, visual cycle function was normal in Cre+/– mice. These data indicate that Rpe65CreERT2 mice are well suited for studies of gene function and pathophysiology in the RPE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elliot H Choi
- Department of Ophthalmology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA.,Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Susie Suh
- Department of Ophthalmology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA.,Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - David E Einstein
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA.,Research Service, VA Long Beach Healthcare System, Long Beach, California, USA
| | - Henri Leinonen
- Department of Ophthalmology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Zhiqian Dong
- Department of Ophthalmology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Sriganesh Ramachandra Rao
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Biochemistry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and.,Neuroscience Graduate Program, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, New York, USA.,Research Service, VA Western New York Healthcare System, Buffalo, New York, USA
| | - Steven J Fliesler
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Biochemistry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and.,Neuroscience Graduate Program, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, New York, USA.,Research Service, VA Western New York Healthcare System, Buffalo, New York, USA
| | - Seth Blackshaw
- Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Minzhong Yu
- Department of Ophthalmic Research, Cole Eye Institute, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio, USA.,Department of Ophthalmology, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Neal S Peachey
- Department of Ophthalmic Research, Cole Eye Institute, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio, USA.,Department of Ophthalmology, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA.,Research Service, Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Krzysztof Palczewski
- Department of Ophthalmology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA.,Department of Physiology and Biophysics, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA.,Department of Chemistry, School of Physical Sciences, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Philip D Kiser
- Department of Ophthalmology, Gavin Herbert Eye Institute, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA.,Department of Physiology and Biophysics, School of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California, USA.,Research Service, VA Long Beach Healthcare System, Long Beach, California, USA
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6
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An efficient inducible RPE-Selective cre transgenic mouse line. Exp Eye Res 2020; 202:108370. [PMID: 33264655 DOI: 10.1016/j.exer.2020.108370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2020] [Revised: 10/30/2020] [Accepted: 11/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Cre-mediated modulation of gene function in the murine retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) has been widely used, but current postnatal RPE-selective Cre driver lines suffer from limited recombination efficiency and/or ectopic or mosaic expression. We sought to generate a transgenic mouse line with consistently efficient RPE-selective Cre activity that could be temporally regulated. We used ϕC31 integrase to insert a DNA construct encoding a human BEST1 promoter fragment driving a Cre recombinase estrogen receptor fusion (BEST1-CreERT2) at the Rosa26 locus of C57BL/6J mice. Rosa26BEST1-CreERT2 mice were bred with a tdTomato reporter line and to mice with a Cre-conditional allele of Tfam. 4-hydroxytamoxifen or vehicle was delivered by four consecutive daily intraperitoneal injections. TdTomato was robustly expressed in the RPE of mice of both sexes for inductions beginning at P14 (males 90.7 ± 4.5%, females 84.7 ± 3.2%) and at 7 weeks (males 84.3 ± 7.0%, females 82 ± 3.6%). <0.6% of Muller glia also expressed tdTomato, but no tdTomato fluorescence was observed in other ocular cells or in multiple non-ocular tissues, with the exception of sparse foci in the testis. No evidence of retinal toxicity was observed in mice homozygous for the transgene induced beginning at P14 and assessed at 7-10 months. RPE-selective ablation of Tfam beginning at P14 led to reduced retinal thickness at 8 months of age and diminished retinal electrical responses at 12 months, as expected. These findings demonstrate that we have generated a mouse line with consistently efficient, tamoxifen-mediated postnatal induction of Cre recombination in the RPE and a small fraction of Muller glia. This line should be useful for temporally regulated modulation of gene function in the murine RPE.
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7
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Seruggia D, Fernández A, Cantero M, Fernández-Miñán A, Gomez-Skarmeta JL, Pelczar P, Montoliu L. Boundary sequences flanking the mouse tyrosinase locus ensure faithful pattern of gene expression. Sci Rep 2020; 10:15494. [PMID: 32968154 PMCID: PMC7511308 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-72543-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2020] [Accepted: 09/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Control of gene expression is dictated by cell-type specific regulatory sequences that physically organize the structure of chromatin, including promoters, enhancers and insulators. While promoters and enhancers convey cell-type specific activating signals, insulators prevent the cross-talk of regulatory elements within adjacent loci and safeguard the specificity of action of promoters and enhancers towards their targets in a tissue specific manner. Using the mouse tyrosinase (Tyr) locus as an experimental model, a gene whose mutations are associated with albinism, we described the chromatin structure in cells at two distinct transcriptional states. Guided by chromatin structure, through the use of Chromosome Conformation Capture (3C), we identified sequences at the 5' and 3' boundaries of this mammalian gene that function as enhancers and insulators. By CRISPR/Cas9-mediated chromosomal deletion, we dissected the functions of these two regulatory elements in vivo in the mouse, at the endogenous chromosomal context, and proved their mechanistic role as genomic insulators, shielding the Tyr locus from the expression patterns of adjacent genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Seruggia
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC), Campus de Cantoblanco, Darwin 3, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- CIBERER-ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Almudena Fernández
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC), Campus de Cantoblanco, Darwin 3, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- CIBERER-ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
| | - Marta Cantero
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC), Campus de Cantoblanco, Darwin 3, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- CIBERER-ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
| | - Ana Fernández-Miñán
- Centro Andaluz de Biología del Desarrollo (CABD), CSIC-Universidad Pablo de Olavide-Junta de Andalucía, Seville, Spain
| | - José Luis Gomez-Skarmeta
- Centro Andaluz de Biología del Desarrollo (CABD), CSIC-Universidad Pablo de Olavide-Junta de Andalucía, Seville, Spain
| | - Pawel Pelczar
- Center for Transgenic Models, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Lluis Montoliu
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC), Campus de Cantoblanco, Darwin 3, 28049, Madrid, Spain.
- CIBERER-ISCIII, Madrid, Spain.
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