The method presented in this article arose from work funded by the BBSRC BB/I021507/1 (TB, RJTW) and an MRC doctoral studentship (MH).

Note: All experiments were performed with accordance to King&#39;s College London, UK and the UK Home Office animal care guidelines.
1. Dissection of e14 Cerebellum
<ol>
	<li>Incubate brown fertilised hens&#39; eggs at 38 &#176;C to embryonic Day 14.</li>
	<li>Using egg scissors decapitate chick embryo in ovo and remove head to a Petri dish containing ice cold PBS (Figure 1A).</li>
	<li>Using standard forceps, make incisions behind each eye all the way through the tissue, removing the eyes and upper jaw. Make a second incision all the way through the pharynx removing the lower jaw (Figure 1B).</li>
	<li>Using standard forceps, remove all skin from surface of skull by peeling it away (Figure 1C) and remove frontal and parietal bones, revealing brain.</li>
	<li>From a ventral aspect, remove pharyngeal cartilage and auxiliary mesenchyme.</li>
	<li>From a dorsal aspect, carefully remove mesenchyme dorsal to the hindbrain taking care not to damage pia, and separate entire brain (Figure 1D).</li>
	<li>Make incision all the way through the tissue between midbrain and hindbrain and separate hindbrain including cerebellum (Figure 1E).</li>
	<li>By making incisions all the way through the tissue at both lateral junctions of cerebellum and alar plate of the hindbrain, remove entire cerebellum, taking care to maintain the integrity of the pia throughout dissection (Figure 1F). Remove the forming choroid plexus (Figure 1G).</li>
	<li>Move the dissected cerebellum into ice cold HBSS.</li>
</ol>
2. Slice Culture of e14 Cerebellum
<ol>
	<li>Transfer the whole cerebellum to the sterile platform of a Tissue Chopper using a spatula or a 3 ml Pasteur pipette with the tip cut away to widen the aperture. Remove excess liquid using a pipette.</li>
	<li>Cut entire whole cerebellum in the required orientation at 300 &#181;m thickness using the tissue chopper set with a cutting speed at 50% of the maximum. Tissue integrity is most easily preserved in sagittal section; however, orientation is also an important consideration for cell analysis (Purkinje cell dendrites are sagittally aligned, while granule cell axons run transversely, perpendicular to the plane of Purkinje cell dendrites).</li>
	<li>Using a 3 ml Pasteur pipette, cover the sliced cerebellum in ice cold HBSS.</li>
	<li>Transfer the slices in HBSS to a 60 mm Petri dish containing ice cold fresh HBSS using a 3 ml Pasteur pipette with cut tip.</li>
	<li>Under a dissecting microscope illuminated with a fiber optic light source, ensure separation of individual slices using watchmaker forceps. Identify slices to be electroporated, based upon their tissue integrity and medio-lateral position. 
	Note: Each dissection from embryo through to slice incubation in culture medium takes around 10-20 min depending upon experience. Perform dissections one at a time to ensure that cerebella spend minimum amount of time between decapitation and ex vivo culture.</li>
</ol>
3. Electroporation of Slices
<ol>
	<li>Construct an electroporation chamber by fixing the anode of an electroporator to the base of a 60 mm Petri dish with insulation tape. Add approximately 1 ml of HBSS to cover the electrode.</li>
	<li>Place a 0.4 &#181;m culture insert on top of the electrode covered in HBSS. Allow the culture insert to rest on the electrode making sure there is always contact between the insert and the electrode. 
	Note: In this setup, the culture insert with the slices will rest upon the surface of the solution, maintaining the circuit but allowing spatial targeting of the cathode.</li>
	<li>Transfer identified slices (up to five per culture insert) onto culture insert using 3 ml Pasteur pipette with the cut tip. Separate and allow to settle onto culture insert in a sagittal orientation.</li>
	<li>Using a pipette, remove excess HBSS so that slices are no longer bathed in solution.</li>
	<li>Using a P10 pipette tip, pipette DNA (at a concentration of 1 &#181;g/&#181;l) diluted with 20% fast green over the surface of targeted region of a slice. 20% fast green ensures viscous DNA solution and prevents prohibitively wide dispersal of DNA. Add approximately 5 &#181;l DNA/fast green solution to each slice (Figure 2B).</li>
	<li>Place the cathode over desired targeted tissue and electroporate with 3 x 10 V, 10 msec duration pulses. Avoid direct contact of the cathode with the tissue. Instead, take advantage of surface tension of the liquid to maintain conductance (place the cathode as close to the tissue as possible without actually touching the tissue).</li>
	<li>Repeat DNA delivery and electroporation to multiple regions of EGL on each individual cerebellar slice as desired.</li>
	<li>Upon completion of electroporation, transfer culture insert to 30 mm Petri dish.</li>
	<li>To each culture, add 1 ml of pre-warmed culture medium (Basal Medium Eagle, 0.5% (w/v) D-(+)-glucose, 1% B27 supplement, 2 mM L-Glutamine, 100 U/ml penicillin, 100 &#956;g/ml streptomycin) underneath the culture insert such that the culture insert is in contact with medium, but slices are not bathed in it.</li>
	<li>Incubate cultures at 37 &#176;C/6% CO2 for up to 3 days. Replace all of the culture medium every 24 hr with fresh pre-warmed medium.</li>
	<li>Following culture, fix slices on culture inserts for 1 hr in 4% paraformaldehyde (or O/N at 4 &#176;C) in a fresh 30 mm dish with no culture media.</li>
</ol>
4. Imaging of Cerebellar Slices
<ol>
	<li>Following fixation, wash slices 3 times for 5 min in PBS.</li>
	<li>Using a razor blade, dissect each electroporated and cultured cerebellar slice from the culture insert by cutting around the slice and removing the slice and the region of insert it is adhered to. Do not attempt to remove slice from the culture insert surface.</li>
	<li>Mount slices in approximately 1 ml of mounting medium containing DAPI (if desired) under a coverslip taking care not to introduce bubbles, and image using laser-scanning confocal microscopy. 
	Note: Imaging parameters can be varied according to the constructs electroporated, and at the discretion of the individual user.</li>
</ol>

The authors have nothing to disclose.

The protocol reported here describes a method for dissecting, electroporating and culturing slices of embryonic Day 14 cerebellum from the chick. This protocol enables targeting of electroporation to small focal regions of the EGL, including isolated targeting of individual cerebellar lobes. It enables genetic analysis and imaging at a high resolution and convenience, and at a low cost compared to established techniques in rodents43-47. Such analysis is not currently possible in vivo due to the extend...

The cerebellum sits at the anterior end of the hindbrain and is responsible for the integration of sensory and motor processing in the mature brain as well as regulating higher cognitive processes1. In mammals and birds, it possesses an elaborate morphology and is heavily foliated, a product of extensive transit amplification of progenitors during development that produces over half of the neurons in the adult brain. The cerebellum has been a subject of study for neurobiologists for centuries and in the molecular era has likewise received significant attention. This relates not only to its inherently interesting biology, but also to the fact that it is heavily implicated in human disease including developmental genetic disorders such as autism spectrum disorders2 and most prominently the cerebellar cancer, medulloblastoma3, which is the most prevalent paediatric brain tumour. Importantly, it is an excellent model system within which to study fate allocation and neurogenesis during brain development4. In recent years, it has also been established as a model system for the comparative study of brain development, owing to the huge diversity of cerebellar forms seen across the vertebrate phylogeny5-10.
The cerebellum develops from the dorsal half of rhombomere 1 in the hindbrain11 and developmentally is comprised of two primary progenitor populations, the rhombic lip and the ventricular zone. The rhombic lip extends around the dorsal region of the neuroepithelium of the hindbrain at the border with the roof plate. It is the birthplace of the glutamatergic excitatory neurons of the cerebellum12-14. The ventricular zone gives rise to the inhibitory GABAergic cerebellar neurons, most prominently the large Purkinje neurons14,15. Later in development (from about embryonic day 13.5 in mouse; e6 in chick16), glutamatergic progenitors migrate tangentially from the rhombic lip and form a pial layer of progenitors: a secondary progenitor zone called the external granule layer (EGL). It is this layer that undergoes the extensive transit amplification that leads to the huge numbers of granule neurons found in the mature brain.
Proliferation in the EGL has long been linked to the sub-pial location that results from tangential migration from the rhombic lip17, with the switch to cell cycle exit and neuronal differentiation of progenitors being associated with their exit from the outer EGL layer into the middle EGL18. Extensive tangential migration of post-mitotic granule cells in medial-lateral axis occurs in the middle and inner EGL19, before final radial migration into the inner granule layer of the mature cerebellar cortex. Migration of cells from the rhombic lip over the cerebellar surface is dependent upon CXCL12 signalling from the pia20-22 and granule cells express the CXCL12 receptor CXCR4. Their tangential migration is thus reminiscent of that of neocortical tangentially migrating inhibitory interneuron populations23-25. Intriguingly, electron microscopic studies17 have suggested that EGL cells with a proliferative morphology maintain pial contact, linking cell behaviour with proliferative capability in a manner reminiscent of the basal progenitors of the mammalian cortex26. This is reflected in the aforementioned stratification of the EGL into three sublayers that are defined by distinct extracellular environments and where granule precursors have distinct gene expression signatures18.
Proliferation of progenitors in the oEGL occurs with a normal distribution of clone sizes such that when progenitors are individually genetically labelled at the end of embryonic development in the mouse, they give rise to a median average of 250-500 postmitotic granule neurons27,28. Proliferation is dependent upon mitogenic SHH signalling from underlying Purkinje neurons29-32. The ability to respond to SHH has been shown to be entirely dependent upon cell autonomous expression of the transcription factor Atoh1, both in vitro33 and in vivo34,35. Likewise, cell cycle exit and differentiation has been shown to be dependent upon the expression of the downstream transcription factor NeuroD136, which is likely a direct repressor of Atoh137.
Despite this progress, and considerable advancement in deciphering the cell biological basis of cell cycle exit38-42, the fundamental molecular mechanism(s) that underlie the decision to exit the cell cycle and to transition from a progenitor to a differentiating neuron, and the associated postmitotic tangential migration in the inner EGL as well as the later switch to radial migration, remain incompletely understood. This is to a large extent because of the experimental intractability of the EGL: it is late developing, and difficult to target genetically since many of the same neurogenic molecules are also crucial earlier in the life of granule precursors at the rhombic lip. To overcome this issue, numerous authors have developed in vivo and ex vivo electroporation as a method to target the postnatal cerebellum in rodents43-48. Here, we pioneer the use of ex vivo electroporation in chick to study the EGL, which represents considerable advantages in terms of cost and convenience. Our method of electroporation and ex vivo slice culture of chick cerebellar tissue uses tissue dissected from embryonic Day 14 chicks at the peak of EGL proliferation. This method allows genetic targeting of the EGL independently of the rhombic lip and will set the stage for genetic dissection of the transition from granule progenitor to postmitotic granule neuron in the cerebellum.

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="573">
	<tbody>
		<tr height="105">
			<td height="105" style="height:105px;width:216px;">McIlwain tissue chopper</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Mickle Laboratory Engineering Ltd</td>
			<td style="width:119px;"></td>
			<td style="width:167px;">Cut at 300&#956;m for best results.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="63">
			<td height="63" style="height:63px;width:216px;">Basal Medium Eagle (Gibco)</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Life Technologies</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">41010-026</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">L-glutamine</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">G7513</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">penicillin/streptomycin</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Sigma</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">P4333</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">0.4&#956;m culture insert</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Millipore</td>
			<td>PICM0RG50</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">TSS20 Ovodyne electroporator&#160;</td>
			<td style="width:71px;">Intracel</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">01-916-02</td>
			<td>Use 3x10v, 10ms pulses for electroporation.</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

ex vivo culture of chick cerebellar slices and spatially targeted electroporation of granule cell precursors

The cerebellar external granule layer (EGL) is the site of the largest transit amplification in the developing brain, and an excellent model for studying neuronal proliferation and differentiation. In addition, evolutionary modifications of its proliferative capability have been responsible for the dramatic expansion of cerebellar size in the amniotes, making the cerebellum an excellent model for evo-devo studies of the vertebrate brain. The constituent cells of the EGL, cerebellar granule progenitors, also represent a significant cell of origin for medulloblastoma, the most prevalent paediatric neuronal tumour. Following transit amplification, granule precursors migrate radially into the internal granular layer of the cerebellum where they represent the largest neuronal population in the mature mammalian brain. In chick, the peak of EGL proliferation occurs towards the end of the second week of gestation. In order to target genetic modification to this layer at the peak of proliferation, we have developed a method for genetic manipulation through ex vivo electroporation of cerebellum slices from embryonic Day 14 chick embryos. This method recapitulates several important aspects of in vivo granule neuron development and will be useful in generating a thorough understanding of cerebellar granule cell proliferation and differentiation, and thus of cerebellum development, evolution and disease.

This section illustrates examples of results that can be obtained using slice electroporation and culture of cerebellum from embryonic Day 14 chick. The dissection of the cerebellum is illustrated in Figure 1 and the electroporation chamber set up is shown in Figure 2. We show that it is possible to electroporate and successfully culture cerebellar slices, which retain their structure and cellular morphologies in vitro (Figure 3A...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Ex Vivo Culture of Chick Cerebellar Slices and Spatially Targeted Electroporation of Granule Cell Precursors at JoVE.com

Ex Vivo Culture of Chick Cerebellar Slices and Spatially Targeted Electroporation of Granule Cell Precursors

The cerebellar external granule layer is the site of the largest transit amplification in the developing brain. Here, we present a protocol to target genetic modification to this layer at the peak of proliferation using ex vivo electroporation and culture of cerebellar slices from embryonic Day 14 chick embryos.

Ex Vivo Culture of Chick Cerebellar Slices and Spatially Targeted Electroporation of Granule Cell Precursors

The cerebellar external granule layer (EGL) is the site of the largest transit amplification in the developing brain, and an excellent model for studying ...

ex-vivo-culture-chick-cerebellar-slices-spatially-targeted

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Developmental Biology

9.2K Views.  King's College London. The cerebellar external granule layer is the site of the largest transit amplification in the developing brain. Here, we present a protocol to target genetic modification to this layer at the peak of proliferation using ex vivo electroporation and culture of cerebellar slices from embryonic Day 14 chick embryos.

Video: Ex Vivo Culture of Chick Cerebellar Slices and Spatially Targeted Electroporation of Granule Cell Precursors

Efficient Gene Transfer in Chick Retinas for Primary Cell Culture Studies: An Ex-ovo Electroporation Approach

The cone photoreceptor-enriched cultures derived from embryonic chick retinas have become an indispensable tool for researchers around the world studying the biology of retinal neurons, particularly photoreceptors. The applications of this system go beyond basic research, as they can easily be adapted to high throughput technologies for drug development. However, genetic manipulation of retinal photoreceptors in these cultures has proven to be very challenging, posing an important limitation to the usefulness of the system. We have recently developed and validated an ex&#160;ovo plasmid electroporation technique that increases the rate of transfection of retinal cells in these cultures by five-fold compared to other currently available protocols1. In this method embryonic chick eyes are enucleated at stage 27, the RPE is removed, and the retinal cup is placed in a plasmid-containing solution and electroporated using easily constructed custom-made electrodes. The retinas are then dissociated and cultured using standard procedures. This technique can be applied to overexpression studies as well as to the downregulation of gene expression, for example via the use of plasmid-driven RNAi technology, commonly achieving transgene expression in 25% of the photoreceptor population. The video format of the present publication will make this technology easily accessible to researchers in the field, enabling the study of gene function in primary retinal cultures. We have also included detailed explanations of the critical steps of this procedure for a successful outcome and reproducibility.

Efficient Gene Transfer in Chick Retinas for Primary Cell Culture Studies: An Ex-ovo Electroporation Approach

Embryonic chick retinal cell cultures constitute valuable tools for the study of photoreceptor biology. We have developed an efficient gene transfer technique based on ex&#160;ovo plasmid electroporation of the retinas prior to culture. This technique considerably increases transfection efficiencies over currently available protocols, making genetic manipulation feasible for this system.

The cone photoreceptor-enriched cultures derived from embryonic chick retinas have become an indispensable tool for researchers around the world studying ...

Optimized Ex-ovo Culturing of Chick Embryos to Advanced Stages of Development

Research in anatomy, embryology, and developmental biology has largely relied on the use of model organisms. In order to study development in live embryos model organisms, such as the chicken, are often used. The chicken is an excellent model organism due to its low cost and minimal maintenance, however they present observational challenges because they are enclosed in an opaque eggshell. In order to properly view the embryo as it develops, the shell must be windowed or removed. Both windowing and ex ovo techniques have been developed to assist researchers in the study of embryonic development. However, each of the methods has limitations and challenges. Here, we present a simple, optimized ex ovo culture technique for chicken embryos that enables the observation of embryonic development from stage HH 19 into late stages of development (HH 40), when many organs have developed. This technique is easy to adopt in both undergraduate classes and more advanced research laboratories where embryo manipulations are conducted.

Optimized Ex-ovo Culturing of Chick Embryos to Advanced Stages of Development

Viewing and accessing the chicken embryo during development can be challenging. We have developed an ex ovo method that is simple, cost effective, and can easily be used in a classroom or research setting. This method provides access to the embryo into late stages of embryonic development (HH 40).

Research in anatomy, embryology, and developmental biology has largely relied on the use of model organisms. In order to study development in live embryos ...

Culture of Embryonic Mouse Cochlear Explants and Gene Transfer by Electroporation

Auditory hair cells located within the mouse organ of Corti detect and transmit sound information to the central nervous system. The mechanosensory hair cells are aligned in one row of inner hair cells and three rows of outer hair cells that extend along the basal to apical axis of the cochlea. The explant culture technique described here provides an efficient method to isolate and maintain cochlear explants from the embryonic mouse inner ear. Also, the morphology and molecular characteristics of sensory hair cells and nonsensory supporting cells within the cochlear explant cultures resemble those observed in vivo and can be studied within its intrinsic cellular environment. The cochlear explants can serve as important experimental tools for the identification and characterization of molecular and genetic pathways that are involved in cellular specification and patterning. Although transgenic mouse models provide an effective approach for gene expression studies, a considerable number of mouse mutants die during embryonic development thereby hindering the analysis and interpretation of developmental phenotypes. The organ of Corti from mutant mice that die before birth can be cultured so that their in vitro development and responses to different factors can be analyzed. Additionally, we describe a technique for electroporating embryonic cochlear explants ex vivo which can be used to downregulate or overexpress specific gene(s) and analyze their potential endogenous function and test whether specific gene product is necessary or sufficient in a given context to influence mammalian cochlear development1-8.

We present a method that describes isolation and culture of cochlear explants from embryonic mouse inner ear. We also demonstrate a method for gene transfer into cochlear explants via square-wave electroporation. The in vitro explant culture coupled with gene transfer technique enables researchers to study the effects of altering gene expression during development.

Auditory hair cells located within the mouse organ of Corti detect and transmit sound information to the central nervous system. The mechanosensory hair ...

Ex Utero Electroporation and Organotypic Slice Culture of Mouse Hippocampal Tissue

Mouse genetics offers a powerful tool determining the role of specific genes during development. Analyzing the resulting phenotypes by immunohistochemical and molecular methods provides information of potential target genes and signaling pathways. To further elucidate specific regulatory mechanisms requires a system allowing the manipulation of only a small number of cells of a specific tissue by either overexpression, ablation or re-introduction of specific genes and follow their fate during development. To achieve this ex utero electroporation of hippocampal structures, especially the dentate gyrus, followed by organotypic slice culture provides such a tool. Using this system to generate mosaic deletions allows determining whether the gene of interest regulates cell-autonomously developmental processes like progenitor cell proliferation or neuronal differentiation. Furthermore it facilitates the rescue of phenotypes by re-introducing the deleted gene or its target genes. In contrast to in utero electroporation the ex utero approach improves the rate of successfully targeting deeper layers of the brain like the dentate gyrus. Overall ex utero electroporation and organotypic slice culture provide a potent tool to study regulatory mechanisms in a semi-native environment mirroring endogenous conditions.

Ex Utero Electroporation and Organotypic Slice Culture of Mouse Hippocampal Tissue

Here we present a protocol providing a tool to examine regulatory mechanisms of specific genes during hippocampal development. Employing ex utero electroporation and organotypic slice culture allows the up- and down-regulation of the expression of genes of interest in single cells and follow their fate during development.

Mouse genetics offers a powerful tool determining the role of specific genes during development. Analyzing the resulting phenotypes by immunohistochemical ...

Ex Vivo Culture of Pharyngeal Arches to Study Heart and Muscle Progenitors and Their Niche

The pharyngeal mesoderm of developing embryos contributes to broad regions of head and heart musculature. We have developed a novel method to study head and heart progenitor cell development with pharyngeal arches (also known as branchial arches) ex vivo. Using this method, we have recently described that the second pharyngeal arch contains self-renewing heart progenitors and serves as a microenvironment for expansion of the progenitors during mouse heart development. The progenitor cells remain undifferentiated and expansive inside the arch, but quickly become functional cardiomyocytes as they migrate out of the arch. We also reported that first pharyngeal arch contains muscle progenitors giving rise to myotubes after leaving the arch. Here, we demonstrate the procedure for the dissection and ex vivo culture of first and second pharyngeal arches from developing mouse embryos. The method enables one to study head and heart progenitor/muscle development, including cardiomyocyte and myotube formation in detail ex vivo.

Ex Vivo Culture of Pharyngeal Arches to Study Heart and Muscle Progenitors and Their Niche

Here, we present a protocol to culture pharyngeal arches to study the biology of heart and muscle progenitor cells and their microenvironment.

The pharyngeal mesoderm of developing embryos contributes to broad regions of head and heart musculature. We have developed a novel method to study head ...

Forward Genetic Approach to Uncover Stress Resistance Genes in Mice &#8212; A High-throughput Screen in ES Cells

Phenotype-driven genetic screens in mice is a powerful technique to uncover gene functions, but are often hampered by extremely high costs, which severely limits its potential. We describe here the use of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells as surrogate cells to screen for a phenotype of interest and subsequently introduce these cells into a host embryo to develop into a living mouse carrying the phenotype. This method provides (1) a cost effective, high-throughput platform for genetic screen in mammalian cells; (2) a rapid way to identify the mutated genes and verify causality; and (3) a short-cut to develop mouse mutants directly from these selected ES cells for whole animal studies. We demonstrated the use of paraquat (PQ) to select resistant mutants and identify mutations that confer oxidative stress resistance. Other stressors or cytotoxic compounds may also be used to screen for resistant mutants to uncover novel genetic determinants of a variety of cellular stress resistance.

Stress resistance is one of the hallmarks for longevity and is known to be genetically governed. Here, we developed an unbiased high-throughput method to screen for mutations that confer stress resistance in ES cells with which to develop mouse models for longevity studies.

Phenotype-driven genetic screens in mice is a powerful technique to uncover gene functions, but are often hampered by extremely high costs, which severely ...

Epicardial Outgrowth Culture Assay and Ex Vivo Assessment of Epicardial-derived Cell Migration

A single layer of epicardial cells lines the heart, providing paracrine factors that stimulate cardiomyocyte proliferation and directly contributing cardiovascular progenitors during development and disease. While a number of factors have been implicated in epicardium-derived cell (EPDC) mobilization, the mechanisms governing their subsequent migration and differentiation are poorly understood. Here, we present in vitro and ex vivo strategies to study EPDC motility and differentiation. First, we describe a method of obtaining primary epicardial cells by outgrowth culture from the embryonic mouse heart. We also introduce a detailed protocol to assess three-dimensional migration of labeled EPDC in an organ culture system. We provide evidence using these techniques that genetic deletion of myocardin-related transcription factors in the epicardium attenuates EPDC migration. This approach serves as a platform to evaluate candidate modifiers of EPDC biology and could be used to develop genetic or chemical screens to identify novel regulators of EPDC mobilization that might be useful for cardiac repair.

Epicardial Outgrowth Culture Assay and Ex Vivo Assessment of Epicardial-derived Cell Migration

Here, we describe methods for isolating primary mouse epicardial cells by an outgrowth culture assay and assessing the functional migration of epicardial-derived cells (EPDC) using an ex vivo heart culture system. These protocols are suitable for identifying genetic and chemical modulators of epicardial epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and motility.

A single layer of epicardial cells lines the heart, providing paracrine factors that stimulate cardiomyocyte proliferation and directly contributing ...

Clonal Analysis of Embryonic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Precursors Using Single Cell Index Sorting Combined with Endothelial Cell Niche Co-culture

The ability to study hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) genesis during embryonic development has been limited by the rarity of HSC precursors in the early embryo and the lack of assays that functionally identify the long-term multilineage engraftment potential of individual putative HSC precursors. Here, we describe methodology that enables the isolation and characterization of functionally validated HSC precursors at the single cell level. First, we utilize index sorting to catalog the precise phenotypic parameter of each individually sorted cell, using a combination of phenotypic markers to enrich for HSC precursors with additional markers for experimental analysis. Second, each index-sorted cell is co-cultured with vascular niche stroma from the aorta-gonad-mesonephros (AGM) region, which supports the maturation of non-engrafting HSC precursors to functional HSC with multilineage, long-term engraftment potential in transplantation assays. This methodology enables correlation of phenotypic properties of clonal hemogenic precursors with their functional engraftment potential or other properties such as transcriptional profile, providing a means for the detailed analysis of HSC precursor development at the single cell level.

Here we present methodology for the clonal analysis of hematopoietic stem cell precursors during murine embryonic development. We combine index sorting of single cells from the embryonic aorta-gonad-mesonephros region with endothelial cell co-culture and transplantation to characterize the phenotypic properties and engraftment potential of single hematopoietic precursors.

The ability to study hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) genesis during embryonic development has been limited by the rarity of HSC precursors in the early ...

CRISPR-mediated Loss of Function Analysis in Cerebellar Granule Cells Using In Utero Electroporation-based Gene Transfer

Brain malformation is often caused by genetic mutations. Deciphering the mutations in patient-derived tissues has identified potential causative factors of the diseases. To validate the contribution of a dysfunction of the mutated genes to disease development, the generation of animal models carrying the mutations is one obvious approach. While germline genetically engineered mouse models (GEMMs) are popular biological tools and exhibit reproducible results, it is restricted by time and costs. Meanwhile, non-germline GEMMs often enable exploring gene function in a more feasible manner. Since some brain diseases (e.g., brain tumors) appear to result from somatic but not germline mutations, non-germline chimeric mouse models, in which normal and abnormal cells coexist, could be helpful for disease-relevant analysis. In this study, we report a method for the induction of CRISPR-mediated somatic mutations in the cerebellum. Specifically, we utilized conditional knock-in mice, in which Cas9 and GFP are chronically activated by the CAG (CMV enhancer/chicken &#223;-actin) promoter after Cre-mediated recombination of the genome. The self-designed single-guide RNAs (sgRNAs) and the Cre recombinase sequence, both encoded in a single plasmid construct, were delivered into cerebellar stem/progenitor cells at an embryonic stage using in utero electroporation. Consequently, transfected cells and their daughter cells were labeled with green fluorescent protein (GFP), thus facilitating further phenotypic analyses. Hence, this method is not only showing electroporation-based gene delivery into embryonic cerebellar cells but also proposing a novel quantitative approach to assess CRISPR-mediated loss-of-function phenotypes.

CRISPR-mediated Loss of Function Analysis in Cerebellar Granule Cells Using In Utero Electroporation-based Gene Transfer

Conventional loss-of-function studies of genes using knockout animals have often been costly and time-consuming. Electroporation-based CRISPR-mediated somatic mutagenesis is a powerful tool to understand gene functions in vivo. Here, we report a method to analyze knockout phenotypes in proliferating cells of the cerebellum.

Brain malformation is often caused by genetic mutations. Deciphering the mutations in patient-derived tissues has identified potential causative factors ...

Ex Vivo Perfusion of the Rodent Placenta

The placenta is a key organ during pregnancy that serves as a barrier to fetal xenobiotic exposure and mediates the exchange of nutrients for waste. An assay is described here to perfuse an isolated rat placenta and evaluate the maternal-to-fetal translocation of xenobiotics ex vivo. In addition, the evaluation of physiological processes such as fluid flow to the fetus and placental metabolism may be conducted with this methodology. This technique is suitable for evaluating maternal-to-fetal kinetics of pharmaceutical candidates or environmental contaminants. In contrast to current alternative approaches, this methodology allows the evaluation of the isolated maternal-fetal vasculature, with the systemic neural or immune involvement removed, allowing any observed changes in physiological function to be attributable to local factors within the isolated tissue.

Here is presented a protocol of ex vivo maternal-fetal vascular perfusion to enable the administration of a test article into maternal vasculature and to evaluate placental transfer of xenobiotic particles or pharmacological agents in addition to alterations in placental physiology.

The placenta is a key organ during pregnancy that serves as a barrier to fetal xenobiotic exposure and mediates the exchange of nutrients for waste. An ...

Ex Vivo Culture of Chick Cerebellar Slices and Spatially Targeted Electroporation of Granule Cell Precursors

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Efficient Gene Transfer in Chick Retinas for Primary Cell Culture Studies: An Ex-ovo Electroporation Approach

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