Name: transduction-transplantation mouse model of myeloproliferative neoplasm
Uploaded: 2016-12-22T12:00:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Transduction-Transplantation Mouse Model of Myeloproliferative Neoplasm at JoVE.com

This work is supported by the V Foundation Scholar (AGF) and the MPN Research Foundation (AGF).

This study was approved and carried out in accordance with the recommendations by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee at University of California, Irvine. All procedures were performed under isoflurane anesthesia and all efforts were made to minimize suffering.
1. Generation of Ecotropic Retrovirus
<ol>
	<li>Prepare high-quality plasmids with a concentration of at least 1 &#181;g/&#181;l using either a commercial maxi-prep kit or cesium chloride purification. 
	NOTE: These inclu...

<ol>
	<li>Daley, G. Q., Van Etten, R. A., Baltimore, D. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Induction+of+chronic+myelogenous+leukemia+in+mice+by+the+P210bcr/abl+gene+of+the+Philadelphia+chromosome.">Induction of chronic myelogenous leukemia in mice by the P210bcr/abl gene of the Philadelphia chromosome.</a> Science(New York, N.Y.). 247 (4944), 824-830 (1990).</li><li>Wernig, G., Mercher, T., Okabe, R., Levine, R. L., Lee, B. H., Gilliland, D. G. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Expression+of+Jak2V617F+causes+a+polycythemia+vera-like+disease+with+associated+myelofibrosis+in+a+murine+bone+marrow+transplant+model.">Expression of Jak2V617F causes a polycythemia vera-like disease with associated myelofibrosis in a murine bone marrow transplant model.</a> Blood. 107 (11), 4274-4281 (2006).</li><li>Lacout, C., Pisani, D. F., Tulliez, M., Gachelin, F. M., Vainchenker, W., Villeval, J. L. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=JAK2V617F+expression+in+murine+hematopoietic+cells+leads+to+MPD+mimicking+human+PV+with+secondary+myelofibrosis.">JAK2V617F expression in murine hematopoietic cells leads to MPD mimicking human PV with secondary myelofibrosis.</a> Blood. 108 (5), 1652-1660 (2006).</li><li>Zaleskas, V. M., Krause, D. S., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Molecular+pathogenesis+and+therapy+of+polycythemia+induced+in+mice+by+JAK2+V617F.">Molecular pathogenesis and therapy of polycythemia induced in mice by JAK2 V617F.</a> PloS One. 1, e18 (2006).</li><li>Bumm, T. G. P., Elsea, C., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Characterization+of+murine+JAK2V617F-positive+myeloproliferative+disease.">Characterization of murine JAK2V617F-positive myeloproliferative disease.</a> Cancer Res. 66 (23), 11156-11165 (2006).</li><li>Marty, C., Pecquet, C., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=.">.</a> Calreticulin mutants in mice induce an MPL-dependent thrombocytosis with frequent progression to myelofibrosis. , (2015).</li><li>Klampfl, T., Gisslinger, H., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Somatic+mutations+of+calreticulin+in+myeloproliferative+neoplasms.">Somatic mutations of calreticulin in myeloproliferative neoplasms.</a> N. Engl. J. Med. 369 (25), 2379-2390 (2013).</li><li>Araki, M., Yang, Y., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Activation+of+the+thrombopoietin+receptor+by+mutant+calreticulin+in+CALR-mutant+myeloproliferative+neoplasms.">Activation of the thrombopoietin receptor by mutant calreticulin in CALR-mutant myeloproliferative neoplasms.</a> Blood. , (2016).</li><li>Lim&#243;n, A., Briones, J., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=High-Titer+Retroviral+Vectors+Containing+the+Enhanced+Green+Fluorescent+Protein+Gene+for+Efficient+Expression+in+Hematopoietic+Cells.">High-Titer Retroviral Vectors Containing the Enhanced Green Fluorescent Protein Gene for Efficient Expression in Hematopoietic Cells.</a> Blood. 90 (9), 3316-3321 (1997).</li><li>Duran-Struuck, R., Dysko, R. C. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Principles+of+bone+marrow+transplantation+(BMT):+providing+optimal+veterinary+and+husbandry+care+to+irradiated+mice+in+BMT+studies.">Principles of bone marrow transplantation (BMT): providing optimal veterinary and husbandry care to irradiated mice in BMT studies.</a> J. Am. Assoc. Lab. Anim. Sci. 48 (1), 11-22 (2009).</li><li>Gavrilescu, L. C., Van Etten, R. A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Production+of+Replication-Defective+Retrovirus+by+Transient+Transfection+of+293T+cells.">Production of Replication-Defective Retrovirus by Transient Transfection of 293T cells.</a> J. Vis. Exp. (10), (2007).</li><li>Challen, G. A., Boles, N., Lin, K. K., Goodell, M. A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Mouse+Hematopoietic+Stem+Cell+Identification+And+Analysis.">Mouse Hematopoietic Stem Cell Identification And Analysis.</a> Cytometry A. 75 (1), 14-24 (2009).</li><li>Ergen, A. V., Jeong, M., Lin, K. K., Challen, G. A., Goodell, M. A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Isolation+and+characterization+of+mouse+side+population+cells.">Isolation and characterization of mouse side population cells.</a> Methods Mol. Bio. (Clifton, N.J.). 946, 151-162 (2013).</li><li>Weksberg, D. C., Chambers, S. M., Boles, N. C., Goodell, M. A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=CD150-+side+population+cells+represent+a+functionally+distinct+population+of+long-term+hematopoietic+stem+cells.">CD150- side population cells represent a functionally distinct population of long-term hematopoietic stem cells.</a> Blood. 111 (4), 2444-2451 (2008).</li><li>Oguro, H., Ding, L., Morrison, S. J. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=SLAM+family+markers+resolve+functionally+distinct+subpopulations+of+hematopoietic+stem+cells+and+multipotent+progenitors.">SLAM family markers resolve functionally distinct subpopulations of hematopoietic stem cells and multipotent progenitors.</a> Cell Stem Cell. 13 (1), 102-116 (2013).</li><li>Li, J., Kent, D. G., Chen, E., Green, A. R. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Mouse+models+of+myeloproliferative+neoplasms:+JAK+of+all+grades.">Mouse models of myeloproliferative neoplasms: JAK of all grades.</a> Dis. Model. Mech. 4 (3), 311-317 (2011).</li><li>Mullally, A., Lane, S. W., Brumme, K., Ebert, B. L. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Myeloproliferative+neoplasm+animal+models.">Myeloproliferative neoplasm animal models.</a> Hematol. Oncol. Clin. North Am. 26 (5), 1065-1081 (2012).</li></ol>

This protocol provides a detailed description of how to perform bone marrow transplants in mice to recapitulate an essential thrombocythemia-like disease with progression to myelofibrosis with CALRdel52 mutation as the driver of disease. Successful transplantation of cells expressing CALRdel52 results in increased platelets, expansion of megakaryocytes, and bone marrow fibrosis. As bone marrow transplantation is a multistep process, it is important to acknowledge steps where technical error can be avoided to prevent poor...

Transduction-transplantation is a useful method to model hematologic malignancies in mice. This technique has been particularly valuable for studying myeloid malignancies dating back to the first demonstration that ectopic expression of BCR-ABL1 could faithfully recapitulate chronic myelogenous leukemia in mice1. This technique has subsequently facilitated the extensive study of JAK2V617F and MPLW515K/L mutated myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN).
MPN are a group of hematologic malignancies characterized by the overproduction of mature myeloid cells and bone marrow fibrosis. These diseases generally arise from the clonal expansion of a hematopoietic stem cell that has acquired a somatic mutation in either Jak2, MPL, or CALR. Transduction-transplantation JAK2V617F and MPLW515K/L models exhibit the clinical features of polycythemia vera and myelofibrosis2-5. Recently, a mouse model of calreticulin-mutated MPN has also been generated with the transduction-transplantation method6. These mice develop an essential thrombocythemia-like disease with increased platelets, increased number of megakaryocytes, and bone marrow fibrosis. Together, these models have not only provided the opportunity to gain insight into the molecular pathogenesis of MPN, but also the capacity to develop and study therapeutics in a pre-clinical setting.
This manuscript provides a detailed description of transduction-transplantation methodology with a focus on the CALRdel52 mutation. This technique involves transplantation of retrovirally transduced bone marrow cells expressing the mutant construct into irradiated syngeneic recipient mice.

<table border="1" fo:keep-together.within-page="1" fo:keep-with-next.within-page="always">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>CELL LINES</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>DMEM</td>
			<td>Corning</td>
			<td>MT-10-013-CV</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>293T cells</td>
			<td>ATCC</td>
			<td>CRL-11268</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>3T3 cells</td>
			<td>ATCC</td>
			<td>CRL-1658</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>PLASMIDS</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>EcoPak, also known as pCL-Eco</td>
			<td>Addgene</td>
			<td>12371</td>
			<td>Retroviral packaging cell lines, such as EcoPack 2-293, may be used in place of the EcoPak plasmid and standard 293T cells. Additional &#947;-retrovirus envelope and packaging plasmids are available from Addgene and others.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>MSCV-IRES-GFP (MIG)</td>
			<td>Addgene</td>
			<td>20672</td>
			<td>Additional &#947;-retroviral transfer plasmids are available from Addgene and others.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>CONSUMABLES</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>27G x 1/2&#34; needles</td>
			<td>BD</td>
			<td>305620</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Fetal bovine serum</td>
			<td>Corning</td>
			<td>MT-35-010-CV</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Penicillin/streptomycin/L-glutamine</td>
			<td>Corning</td>
			<td>MT-30-009-CI</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Trypsin-EDTA (0.05%)</td>
			<td>Corning</td>
			<td>MT-25-052-CI</td>
			<td>Can be homemade</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>PBS</td>
			<td>Corning</td>
			<td>MT-21-031-CV</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>10cm dishes</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>172931</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>15 ml conical tubes</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>12565268</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>60mm dishes</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>150288</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Polybrene</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>NC9840454</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>5-FU</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>A13456-06</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>100um cell strainers</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>22363549</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>50 ml conical tubes</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>12565270</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>6-well plate</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>130184</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>FACS tubes</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>14-959-5</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>0.45um syringe filters</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>0974061B</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Opti-MEM</td>
			<td>Gibco</td>
			<td>31985-070</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>ACK buffer</td>
			<td>Lonza</td>
			<td>10-548E</td>
			<td>Can be homemade</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Recombinant murine IL-3</td>
			<td>Peprotech</td>
			<td>213-13</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Recombinant murine IL-6</td>
			<td>Peprotech</td>
			<td>216-16</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Recombinant murine SCF</td>
			<td>Peprotech</td>
			<td>250-03</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>X-tremeGENE 9</td>
			<td>Roche</td>
			<td>6365809001</td>
			<td>Transfection reagent</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>1.5 ml centrifuge tubes</td>
			<td>USA Scientific</td>
			<td>1615-5500</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>EQUIPMENT</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>BD Accuri C6</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>X-ray irradiator</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

transduction-transplantation mouse model of myeloproliferative neoplasm

Transduction-transplantation is a quick and efficient way to model human hematologic malignancies in mice. This technique results in expression of the gene of interest in hematopoietic cells and can be used to study the gene's role in normal and/or malignant hematopoiesis. This protocol provides a detailed description on how to perform transduction-transplantation using calreticulin (CALR) mutations recently identified in myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN) as an example. In this protocol whole bone marrow cells from 5-flurouracil (5-FU) treated donor mice are transduced with a retrovirus encoding mutant CALR and transplanted into lethally irradiated syngeneic hosts. Donor cells expressing mutant CALR are marked with green fluorescent protein (GFP). Transplanted mice develop an MPN phenotype including elevated platelets in the peripheral blood, expansion of megakaryocytes in the bone marrow, and bone marrow fibrosis. We provide a step-by-step account of how to generate retrovirus, calculate viral titer, transduce whole bone marrow cells, and transplant into irradiated recipient mice.

The transduction-transplantation technique results in hematopoietic reconstitution of the recipient mice with cells expressing the gene of interest. Figure 1 shows an overview of the transduction-transplantation mouse model of calreticulin mutated MPN. Briefly, retrovirus expressing CALRwt or CALRdel52 is used to infect BM cells from a C57B/6 donor mouse. Transduced cells are transplanted into irradiated C57B/6 recipient mouse and donor cell engraftment occurs during the ...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Transduction-Transplantation Mouse Model of Myeloproliferative Neoplasm at JoVE.com

Transduction-Transplantation Mouse Model of Myeloproliferative Neoplasm

This manuscript provides a description of the methodology used to establish transduction-transplantation mouse models. A detailed account is given of technical errors to avoid when performing bone marrow transplants. A clear understanding should be gained of the importance of high viral titer, transfection/transduction, and irradiation.

Transduction-transplantation is a quick and efficient way to model human hematologic malignancies in mice. This technique results in expression of the ...

The overall goal of this procedure is to generate mice expressing the gene of interest in hematopoietic cells using the transduction-transplantation method. Within a short period of time, this method can help answer whether your gene of interest induces a hematologic malignancy. The implications of this technique extend towards therapy, or diagnoses of hematological malignancies, because of the expedited development of mouse models that can test putative therapeutics.Although this method can provide insight into hematological malignancy, it can also be used to study the role of a gene of interest of normal hematopoiesis. Generally, individuals new to this experiment will struggle, as it requires multiple steps. Also, generation of a high titer virus is critical to the success of this experiment.Visual demonstration of this procedure is important, as working with mice can be difficult, and requires practice. After anesthetizing a mouse, and checking for depth of anesthesia according to the text protocol, position the mouse on its side, and using the thumb and index finger, restrain the animal so that the eye protrudes slightly from the head. To inject 150 milligrams per kilogram of 5-flurouracil, or 5-FU, via a retro-orbital injection, insert a 27-gauge half-inch needle at a 45-degree angle with the bevel facing up in a medial direction, and stop when the needle is halfway inserted.Slowly inject the solution, and then carefully remove the needle. Examine the mouse for any signs of injury, such as swelling or bleeding, and ensure that the mouse recovers and begins to walk. Five days later, after sacrificing the animal according to the text protocol, use 70%ethanol to sterilize the mouse by spraying generously until the fur becomes wet.With dissecting scissors, make an incision in the skin, and dissect the fascia from the leg muscles. Then, dissect the leg away from the mouse by severing the femur at the hip, and the tibia at the ankle. Bend the leg into an L-shape and use dissecting scissors to separate each leg bone by cutting at the knee joint.Then, gently scrape the muscle towards one end of the leg bone until the cartilage is disengaged. Next, using a syringe with a 27-gauge half-inch needle, in PBS supplemented with 2%FBS, flush each leg bone over a 100 micrometer nylon membrane into a 50 milliliter conical tube, until the bone turns white to maximize the number of cells harvested. With the plunger of a syringe, mash the cells through the nylon membrane into the 50 milliliter conical tube to obtain a single cell suspension.Repeat with the other mouse leg. Centrifuge the harvested cells at 400 times g in four degrees Celsius for 10 minutes, and discard the supernatant. Then, at five milliliters of ammonium chloride potassium, or ACK, to re-suspend the bone marrow.Incubate the cell suspension on ice for 10 minutes to lyse the red blood cells. To stop the lysis, use PBS to fill the tube. Then, centrifuge the cells again, and discard the supernatant.With five milliliters of PBS, re-suspend the cells, and by Trypan blue exclusion, use a hemocytometer to count the cells. Now, add 2x pre-stem cocktail to re-suspend the cells at two times 10 to the sixth cells per milliliter. Then, plate two milliliters in the wells of six-well plates.Incubate the cells at 37 degrees Celsius, and 5%carbon dioxide overnight. After the incubation, add two milliliters of viral supernatant to each well, followed by eight micrograms per milliliter of polybrene. Spin the plates at 1500 times g in 30 degrees Celsius for 90 minutes.Then return the plates to the incubator overnight. Pipette the cell suspension into conical tubes, and centrifuge at 400 times g in four degrees Celsius for 10 minutes. Use 2x pre-stem cocktail per well to re-suspend the cells, and re-plate in the original wells.After preparing recipient mice for transplantation according to the text protocol, harvest transduced donor cells from the six-well plates by gently pipetting supernatant into conical tubes. Use one milliliter of PBS to wash each well, and collect the residual cells in the tubes. Add 0.5 milliliters of 0.05%trypsin to the wells, and incubate at 37 degrees Celsius for five minutes.Next, add one milliliter of D-10 to the wells, and detach any remaining cells by gently pipetting. Then, add the cells to the respective tubes and pellet at 400 times g in four degrees Celsius for 10 minutes. With PBS, wash the cells again.Then, after spinning, use five milliliters of PBS to re-suspend the cells, and count them using Trypan blue exclusion and a hemocytometer. For injection into mice, re-suspend five times 10 to the fifth, through two times 10 to the sixth cells in 50 to 100 microliters of PBS. Position the mouse on its side, and restrain it by using the thumb and index finger, so that the eye protrudes slightly from the head.With the bevel facing up, insert the needle lateral to the medial canthus at a 45-degree angle, and inject. Following the injection, examine the mouse for any signs of injury, such a swelling or bleeding, at the injection site, and refer to the text protocol for additional post-injection care. Finally, analyze GFP expression in blood, according to the text protocol.This figure illustrates how to calculate relative viral titer where the percent GFP is calculated from events collected from the live cell gate. Shown here is a titer with more than one viral particle per cell, and these samples represent titers with single viral particles per cell. Ideally, at least 50%of GFP-positive cells would be detected with a one to 30 dilution of viral supernatant.In this experiment, a successful transplant recipient is presented where CALRdel52 mice exhibit an MPN phenotype with increased platelets, increased megakaryocytes in the bone marrow, and bone marrow fibrosis. Once mastered, this technique can be done in eight days, if performed properly. While attempting this procedure, it is important to follow every step of the protocol.After its development, this technique paved the way for researcher to explore the effects of specific genes in hematopoiesis. After watching this video, you should have a good understanding of how to produce mice expressing your gene of interest in hematopoietic cells.

transduction-transplantation-mouse-model-myeloproliferative

Research

JoVE Journal

Cancer Research

Fluorescent Orthotopic Mouse Model of Pancreatic Cancer

Pancreatic cancer remains one of the cancers for which survival has not improved substantially in the last few decades. Only 7% of diagnosed patients will survive longer than five years. In order to understand and mimic the microenvironment of pancreatic tumors, we utilized a murine orthotopic model of pancreatic cancer that allows non-invasive imaging of tumor progression in real time. Pancreatic cancer cells expressing green fluorescent protein (PANC-1 GFP) were suspended in basement membrane matrix, high concentration, (e.g., Matrigel HC) with serum-free media and then injected into the tail of the pancreas via laparotomy. The cell suspension in the high concentration basement membrane matrix becomes a gel-like substance once it reaches room temperature; therefore, it gels when it comes in contact with the pancreas, creating a seal at the injection site and preventing any cell leakage. Tumor growth and metastasis to other organs are monitored in live animals by using fluorescence. It is critical to use the appropriate filters for excitation and emission of GFP. The steps for the orthotopic implantation are detailed in this article so researchers can easily replicate the procedure in nude mice. The main steps of this protocol are preparation of the cell suspension, surgical implantation, and whole body fluorescent in vivo imaging. This orthotopic model is designed to investigate the efficacy of novel therapeutics on primary and metastatic tumors.

A procedure to implant green fluorescent protein-expressing pancreatic cancer cells (PANC-1 GFP) orthotopically into the pancreas of Balb-c Ola Hsd-Fox1nu mice to assess tumor progression and metastasis is presented here.

Pancreatic cancer remains one of the cancers for which survival has not improved substantially in the last few decades. Only 7% of diagnosed patients will ...

A Mouse Model of Fatigue Induced by Peripheral Irradiation

Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is a distressing and costly condition that often affects patients receiving cancer treatments, including radiation therapy. Here we describe a method using targeted peripheral irradiation to induce fatigue-like behavior in mice. With appropriate shielding, the irradiation targets the lower abdominal/pelvic region of the mouse, sparing the brain, in an effort to model radiation treatment received by individuals with pelvic cancers. We deliver an irradiation dose that is sufficient to induce fatigue-like behavior in mice, measured by voluntary wheel-running activity (VWRA), without causing obvious morbidity. Since wheel running is a normal, voluntary behavior in mice, its use should have little confounding effect on other behavioral tests or biological measures. Hence, wheel running can be used as a feasible outcome measure in understanding the behavioral and biological correlates of fatigue. CRF is a complex condition with frequent comorbidities, and likely has causes related both to cancer and its various treatments. The methods described in this paper are useful for investigating radiation-induced changes that contribute to the development of CRF and, more generally, to explore the biological networks that can explain the development and persistence of a peripherally-triggered but centrally-driven behavior like fatigue.

We describe a method using targeted peripheral irradiation to induce fatigue-like behavior in mice. The selected non-lethal irradiation dose leads to a week-long reduction in voluntary wheel-running activity.

Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is a distressing and costly condition that often affects patients receiving cancer treatments, including radiation therapy. ...

Isolation of Circulating Tumor Cells in an Orthotopic Mouse Model of Colorectal Cancer

Despite the advantages of easy applicability and cost-effectiveness, subcutaneous mouse models have severe limitations and do not accurately simulate tumor biology and tumor cell dissemination. Orthotopic mouse models have been introduced to overcome these limitations; however, such models are technically demanding, especially in hollow organs such as the large bowel. In order to produce uniform tumors which reliably grow and metastasize, standardized techniques of tumor cell preparation and injection are critical. 
We have developed an orthotopic mouse model of colorectal cancer (CRC) which develops highly uniform tumors and can be used for tumor biology studies as well as therapeutic trials. Tumor cells from either primary tumors, 2-dimensional (2D) cell lines or 3-dimensional (3D) organoids are injected into the cecum and, depending on the metastatic potential of the injected tumor cells, form highly metastatic tumors. In addition, CTCs can be found regularly. We here describe the technique of tumor cell preparation from both 2D cell lines and 3D organoids as well as primary tumor tissue, the surgical and injection techniques as well as the isolation of CTCs from the tumor-bearing mice, and present tips for troubleshooting.

We describe the establishment of orthotopic colorectal tumors via injection of tumor cells or organoids into the cecum of mice and the subsequent isolation of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from this model.

Despite the advantages of easy applicability and cost-effectiveness, subcutaneous mouse models have severe limitations and do not accurately simulate ...

A Genetically Engineered Mouse Model of Sporadic Colorectal Cancer

Despite the advantages of easy applicability and cost-effectiveness, colorectal cancer mouse models based on tumor cell injection have severe limitations and do not accurately simulate tumor biology and tumor cell dissemination. Genetically engineered mouse models have been introduced to overcome these limitations; however, such models are technically demanding, especially in large organs such as the colon in which only a single tumor is desired.
As a result, an immunocompetent, genetically engineered mouse model of colorectal cancer was developed which develops highly uniform tumors and can be used for tumor biology studies as well as therapeutic trials. Tumor development is initiated by surgical, segmental infection of the distal colon with adeno-cre virus in compound conditionally mutant mice. The tumors can be easily detected and monitored via colonoscopy. We here describe the surgical technique of segmental adeno-cre infection of the colon, the surveillance of the tumor via high-resolution colonoscopy and present the resulting colorectal tumors.

A protocol for the establishment of a genetically engineered mouse model of colorectal cancer by segmental adeno-cre infection and its surveillance via high-resolution colonoscopy is presented.

Despite the advantages of easy applicability and cost-effectiveness, colorectal cancer mouse models based on tumor cell injection have severe limitations ...

Tumor Engraftment in a Xenograft Mouse Model of Human Mantle Cell Lymphoma

B lymphocytes are key players in immune cell circulation and they mainly home to and reside in lymphoid organs. While normal B cells only proliferate when stimulated by T lymphocytes, oncogenic B cells survive and expand autonomously in undefined organ niches. Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) is one such B cell disorder, where the median survival rate of patients is 4 - 5 years. This calls for the need of effective mechanisms by which the homing and engraftment of these cells are blocked in order to increase the survival and longevity of patients. Therefore, the effort to develop a xenograft mouse model to study the efficacy of MCL therapeutics by blocking the homing mechanism in vivo is of utmost importance. Development of animal recipients for human cell xenotransplantation to test early stage drugs have long been pursued, as relevant preclinical mouse models are crucial to screen new therapeutic agents. This animal model is developed to avoid human graft rejection and to establish a model for human diseases, and it may be an extremely useful tool to study disease progression of different lymphoma types and to perform preclinical testing of candidate drugs for hematologic malignancies, like MCL. We established a xenograft mouse model that will serve as an excellent resource to study and develop novel therapeutic approaches for MCL.

Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) is a difficult to treat B cell disorder and it is equally difficult to establish a xenograft mouse model of primary MCL to study and develop therapeutics. Here, we describe the successful establishment of MCL xenografts in mice to help understand its underlying biology.

B lymphocytes are key players in immune cell circulation and they mainly home to and reside in lymphoid organs. While normal B cells only proliferate when ...

A Syngeneic Pancreatic Cancer Mouse Model to Study the Effects of Irreversible Electroporation

Pancreatic cancer (PC), a disease which kills approximately 40,000 patients each year in the US, has successfully evaded several therapeutic approaches including the promising immunotherapeutic strategies. Irreversible electroporation (IRE) is a non-thermal ablation technique that induces tumor cell death without destruction of adjacent collagenous structures, thus enabling the procedure to be performed in tumors very close to blood vessels. Unlike thermal ablation techniques, IRE results in gradual apoptotic cell death, along with immediate ablation induced necrosis, and is currently in clinical use for selected patients with locally advanced PC. An ablative, non-target specific procedure like IRE can induce a myriad of responses in the tumor microenvironment. A few studies have addressed the effects of IRE on tumor growth in other tumor types, but none have focused on PC. We have developed a syngeneic mouse model of PC in which subcutaneous (SQ) and orthotopic tumors can be successfully treated with IRE in a highly controlled setting, facilitating various longitudinal studies post procedure. This animal model serves as a robust system to study the effects of IRE and ways to improve the clinical efficacy of IRE.

Irreversible electroporation (IRE) is a non-thermal ablation technique used for the treatment of locally advanced pancreatic cancer. Being a relatively new technique, the effects of IRE on the tumor growth are poorly understood. We have developed a syngeneic mouse model that facilitates studying the effects of IRE on pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatic cancer (PC), a disease which kills approximately 40,000 patients each year in the US, has successfully evaded several therapeutic approaches ...

Ultrasound-Guided Orthotopic Implantation of Murine Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma

The recent success of immune checkpoint blockade in melanoma and lung adenocarcinoma has galvanized the field of immuno-oncology as well as revealed the limitations of current treatments, as the majority of patients do not respond to immunotherapy. Development of accurate preclinical models to quickly identify novel and effective therapeutic combinations are critical to address this unmet clinical need. Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) is a canonical example of an immune checkpoint blockade resistant tumor with only 2% of patients responding to immunotherapy. The genetically engineered KrasG12D+/-;Trp53R172H+/-;Pdx-1 Cre (KPC) mouse model of PDA recapitulates human disease and is a valuable tool for assessing therapies for immunotherapy resistant in the preclinical setting, but time to tumor onset is highly variable. Surgical orthotopic tumor implantation models of PDA maintain the immunobiological hallmarks of the KPC tissue-specific tumor microenvironment (TME) but require a time-intensive procedure and introduce aberrant inflammation. Here, we use an ultrasound-guided orthotopic tumor implantation model (UG-OTIM) to non-invasively inject KPC-derived PDA cell lines directly into the mouse pancreas. UG-OTIM tumors grow in the endogenous tissue site, faithfully recapitulate histological features of the PDA TME, and reach enrollment-sized tumors for preclinical studies by four weeks after injection with minimal seeding on the peritoneal wall. The UG-OTIM system described here is a rapid and reproducible tumor model that may allow for high throughput analysis of novel therapeutic combinations in the murine PDA TME.

We describe a protocol for the ultrasound guided implantation of murine-derived pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cell lines directly into the native tumor site. This approach resulted in pancreatic tumors detectable by ultrasound scanning within 2-4 weeks of injection, and significantly reduced the proportion tumor cell seeding on the peritoneal wall as compared to surgical orthotopic implantation.

The recent success of immune checkpoint blockade in melanoma and lung adenocarcinoma has galvanized the field of immuno-oncology as well as revealed the ...

An Orthotopic Resectional Mouse Model of Pancreatic Cancer

There is a lack of satisfactory animal models to study adjuvant and/or neoadjuvant therapy in patients being considered for surgery of pancreatic cancer (PC). To address this deficiency, we describe a mouse model involving orthotopic implantation of PC followed by distal pancreatectomy and splenectomy. The model has been demonstrated to be safe and suitably flexible for the study of various therapeutic approaches in adjuvant and neo adjuvant settings.
In this model, a pancreatic tumor is first generated by implanting a mixture of human pancreatic cancer cells (luciferase-tagged AsPC-1) and human cancer associated pancreatic stellate cells into the distal pancreas of Balb/c athymic nude mice. After three weeks, the cancer is resected by re-laparotomy, distal pancreatectomy and splenectomy. In this model, bioluminescence imaging can be used to follow the progress of cancer development and effects of resection/treatments. Following resection, adjuvant therapy can be given. Alternatively, neoadjuvant treatment can be given prior to resection.
Representative data from 45 mice are presented. All mice underwent successful distal pancreatectomy/splenectomy with no issues of hemostasis. A macroscopic proximal pancreatic margin greater than 5 mm was achieved in 43 (96%) mice. The technical success rate of pancreatic resection was 100%, with 0% early mortality and morbidity. None of the animals died during the week after resection.
In summary, we describe a robust and reproducible technique for a surgical resection model of pancreatic cancer in mice which mimics the clinical scenario. The model may be useful for the testing of both adjuvant and neoadjuvant treatments.

In the clinical context, patients with localized pancreatic cancer will undergo pancreatectomy followed by adjuvant treatment. This protocol reported here aims to establish a safe and effective method of modelling this clinical scenario in nude mice, through orthotopic implantation of pancreatic cancer followed by distal pancreatectomy and splenectomy.

There is a lack of satisfactory animal models to study adjuvant and/or neoadjuvant therapy in patients being considered for surgery of pancreatic cancer ...

Non-Invasive PET/MR Imaging in an Orthotopic Mouse Model of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Preclinical experimental models of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) that recapitulate human disease represent an important tool to study tumorigenesis and evaluate novel therapeutic approaches. Non-invasive whole-body imaging using positron emission tomography (PET) provides critical insights into the in vivo characteristics of tissues at the molecular level in real-time. We present here a protocol for orthotopic HCC xenograft creation with and without hepatic artery ligation (HAL) to induce tumor hypoxia and the assessment of their tumor metabolism in vivo using [18F]Fluoromisonidazole ([18F]FMISO) and [18F]Fluorodeoxyglucose ([18F]FDG) PET/magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. Tumor hypoxia could be readily visualized using the hypoxia marker [18F]FMISO, and it was found that the [18F]FMISO uptake was higher in HCC mice that underwent HAL than in the non-HAL group, whereas [18F]FDG could not distinguish tumor hypoxia between the two groups. HAL tumors also displayed a higher level of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1&#945; expression in response to hypoxia. Quantification of HAL tumors showed a 2.3-fold increase in [18F]FMISO uptake based on the standardized value uptake (SUV) approach.

Here, we present a protocol to create orthotopic hepatocellular carcinoma xenografts with and without hepatic artery ligation and perform non-invasive positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of tumor hypoxia using [18F]Fluoromisonidazole ([18F]FMISO) and [18F]Fluorodeoxyglucose ([18F]FDG).

Preclinical experimental models of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) that recapitulate human disease represent an important tool to study tumorigenesis and ...

Syngeneic Mouse Orthotopic Allografts to Model Pancreatic Cancer

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a very complex disease characterized by a heterogeneous tumor microenvironment made up of a diverse stroma, immune cells, vessels, nerves, and extracellular matrix components. Over the years, different mouse models of PDAC have been developed to address the challenges posed by its progression, metastatic potential, and phenotypic heterogeneity. Immunocompetent mouse orthotopic allografts of PDAC have shown good promise owing to their fast and reproducible tumor progression in comparison to genetically engineered mouse models. Moreover, combined with their ability to mimic the biological features observed in autochthonous PDAC, cell line-based orthotopic allograft mouse models enable large-scale in vivo experiments. Thus, these models are widely used in preclinical studies for rapid genotype-phenotype and drug-response analyses. The aim of this protocol is to provide a reproducible and robust approach to successfully inject primary mouse PDAC cell cultures into the pancreas of syngeneic recipient mice. In addition to the technical details, important information is given that must be considered before performing these experiments.

Syngeneic mouse orthotopic allografts of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) recapitulate the biology, phenotypes, and therapeutic responses of disease subtypes. Owing to their fast, reproducible tumor progression, they are widely used in preclinical studies. Here, we show common practices to generate these models, injecting syngeneic murine PDAC cultures into the pancreas.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a very complex disease characterized by a heterogeneous tumor microenvironment made up of a diverse stroma, ...