Khokha Mustafa K
Department of Pediatrics and Genetics, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06520, USA.
Genesis. 2012 Mar;50(3):133-42. doi: 10.1002/dvg.22015. Epub 2012 Feb 20.
The frog Xenopus has been vital for biomedical science for over 80 years, contributing to diverse fields from cell signaling, cell and developmental biology, to ion channel physiology and toxicology. Its experimentally manipulable oocytes and embryos provide abundant material for molecular and biochemical approaches for a wide range of gene discovery and protein function studies. In recent years, the Xenopus community has invested in key resources for functional genomics, including genome-wide full-length cDNA collections and genome assemblies as well as genetic tools. These assets combine with Xenopus' extensive range of functional assays to create exciting new research avenues with medical as well as basic applications. This review describes how these resources were developed and what new tools are on the horizon.
80多年来，非洲爪蟾在生物医学科学领域一直至关重要，为从细胞信号传导、细胞与发育生物学，到离子通道生理学和毒理学等多个领域做出了贡献。其可进行实验操作的卵母细胞和胚胎为广泛的基因发现和蛋白质功能研究的分子与生化方法提供了丰富的材料。近年来，非洲爪蟾研究群体投入了功能基因组学的关键资源，包括全基因组全长cDNA文库、基因组组装以及遗传工具。这些资源与非洲爪蟾广泛的功能检测方法相结合，开创了令人兴奋的新研究途径，具有医学和基础应用价值。本综述描述了这些资源是如何开发的以及即将出现的新工具。
