Kawamata Masaki, Ochiya Takahiro
Section for Studies on Metastasis, National Cancer Center Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan.
Methods Mol Biol. 2010;597:169-77. doi: 10.1007/978-1-60327-389-3_12.
Rats have important advantages over mice as an experimental system for physiological and pharmacological investigations. Their embryonic stem (ES) cells, after differentiation into each tissue or organ, are applied in regenerative medicine, which enables examination of the effects of drugs for various diseases. Knockout rats will also provide a suitable model system for many human diseases and a great amount of new insights into gene functions, which have not been revealed by knockout mice. In 2008, we experienced the world's first success in establishing rat ES cells with chimeric contribution. Following on the heels of our report, others reported the establishment of rat ES cells that could complete a germline transmission. Recent studies on rat as well as mouse ES cells suggest that modifications of signal inhibitors and serum in the medium are critical for the maintenance of the pluripotency of ES cells. In this chapter, we discuss techniques for the successful establishment and maintenance of rat ES cells.
作为生理和药理研究的实验系统，大鼠相对于小鼠具有重要优势。其胚胎干细胞（ES细胞）分化为各个组织或器官后，可应用于再生医学，从而能够研究药物对各种疾病的疗效。基因敲除大鼠也将为许多人类疾病提供合适的模型系统，并为基因功能带来大量新见解，而这些是基因敲除小鼠尚未揭示的。2008年，我们首次成功建立了具有嵌合贡献的大鼠ES细胞。在我们的报告之后，其他人也报道了能够实现种系传递的大鼠ES细胞的建立。最近对大鼠和小鼠ES细胞的研究表明，培养基中信号抑制剂和血清的改良对于维持ES细胞的多能性至关重要。在本章中，我们将讨论成功建立和维持大鼠ES细胞的技术。
