Winchenbach Jan, Düking Tim, Berghoff Stefan A, Stumpf Sina K, Hülsmann Swen, Nave Klaus-Armin, Saher Gesine
Department of Neurogenetics, Max Planck Institute of Experimental Medicine, Göttingen, Germany.
Clinic for Anesthesiology, Research Group Central Respiratory Control, University Medical Center Göttingen, Experimental Neuroanesthesiology, Göttingen, Germany; Center Nanoscale Microscopy and Molecular Physiology of the Brain (CNMPB), Göttingen, Germany.
F1000Res. 2016 Dec 30;5:2934. doi: 10.12688/f1000research.10509.1. eCollection 2016.
Studying astrocytes in higher brain functions has been hampered by the lack of genetic tools for the efficient expression of inducible Cre recombinase throughout the CNS, including the neocortex. Therefore, we generated BAC transgenic mice, in which CreERT2 is expressed under control of the regulatory region. When crossbred to Cre reporter mice, adult Aldh1l1-CreERT2 mice show efficient gene targeting in astrocytes. No such Cre-mediated recombination was detectable in CNS neurons, oligodendrocytes, and microglia. As expected, Aldh1l1-CreERT2 expression was evident in several peripheral organs, including liver and kidney. Taken together, Aldh1l1-CreERT2 mice are a useful tool for studying astrocytes in neurovascular coupling, brain metabolism, synaptic plasticity and other aspects of neuron-glia interactions.
由于缺乏能在包括新皮层在内的整个中枢神经系统中高效表达诱导型Cre重组酶的遗传工具，对高等脑功能中星形胶质细胞的研究受到了阻碍。因此，我们构建了BAC转基因小鼠，其中CreERT2在调控区域的控制下表达。当与Cre报告基因小鼠杂交时，成年Aldh1l1-CreERT2小鼠在星形胶质细胞中显示出高效的基因靶向。在中枢神经系统的神经元、少突胶质细胞和小胶质细胞中未检测到这种Cre介导的重组。正如预期的那样，Aldh1l1-CreERT2在包括肝脏和肾脏在内的几个外周器官中表达明显。综上所述，Aldh1l1-CreERT2小鼠是研究神经血管耦合、脑代谢、突触可塑性和神经元-胶质细胞相互作用其他方面星形胶质细胞的有用工具。
