Xenopus laevis provides an ideal model system for studying cell fate specification and physiological function of individual retinal cells in primary cell culture. Here we present a technique for dissecting retinal tissues and generating primary cell cultures that are imaged for calcium activity and analyzed by in situ hybridization.
Conducting Reactions Below Room Temperature
The zebra finch (Taeniopygiaguttata) is a valuable model organism; however, early stages of zebra finch development have not been extensively studied. The protocol describes how to dissect early embryos for developmental and molecular applications.
We present a two-part protocol that combines fluorescent calcium imaging with in situ hybridization, allowing the experimenter to correlate patterns of calcium activity with gene expression profiles on a single-cell level.