Generation of Transgenic Rats using a Lentiviral Vector Approach

Summary

This article aims to provide the methodology for lentiviral transgenesis in rat embryos using multiple injections of a virus suspension into the zygote perivitelline space. Female rats that are mated with a fertile male strain with a different dominant fur color is used to generate pseudopregnant foster mothers.

Abstract

Transgenic animal models are fundamentally important for modern biomedical research. The incorporation of foreign genes into early mouse or rat embryos is an invaluable tool for gene function analysis in living organisms. The standard transgenesis method is based on microinjecting foreign DNA fragments into a pronucleus of a fertilized oocyte. This technique is widely used in mice but remains relatively inefficient and technically demanding in other animal species. The transgene can also be introduced into one-cell-stage embryos via lentiviral infection, providing an effective alternative to standard pronuclear injections, especially in species or strains with a more challenging embryo structure. In this approach, a suspension that contains lentiviral vectors is injected into the perivitelline space of a fertilized rat embryo, which is technically less demanding and has a higher success rate. Lentiviral vectors were shown to efficiently incorporate the transgene into the genome to determine the generation of stable transgenic lines. Despite some limitations (e.g., Biosafety Level 2 requirements, DNA fragment size limits), lentiviral transgenesis is a rapid and efficient transgenesis method. Additionally, using female rats that are mated with a fertile male strain with a different dominant fur color is presented as an alternative to generate pseudopregnant foster mothers.

Introduction

For many years, laboratory rodents, such as rats and mice, have been used to model human physiological and pathological conditions. Animal research has led to discoveries that were unattainable by any other means. Initially, genetic studies focused on the analysis of spontaneously occurring disorders and phenotypes that are considered to closely mimic the human condition¹. The development of genetic engineering methods allowed the introduction or deletion of specific genes to obtain a desired phenotype. Therefore, the generation of transgenic animals is recognized as a fundamental technique in modern research that allows studies of gene functio....

Protocol

The production and application of viral vectors was in accordance with Biosafety Level 2 guidelines and was approved by the Polish Ministry of Environment. All experimental animal procedures that are described below were approved by the Local Ethical Committee. The animals were housed in individually ventilated cages at a stable temperature (21–23 °C) and humidity (50–60%) with ad libitum access to water and food under a 12 h/12 h light/dark cycle.

1. Lentiviral vector productio.......

Discussion

Advances in transgenic technologies have made rodent models an invaluable tool in biomedical research. They provide the opportunity to study genotype-phenotype relationships in vivo. Here, we present a widely available alternative for conventional transgenesis by pronuclear injections. The use of lentiviral gene transduction bypasses the need for demanding microinjections because viral vectors can be injected under the zona pellucida. This approach does not affect embryo integrity, which essentially guarantees a 100% sur.......

Materials

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
7500 Real Time PCR System	Applied Biosystems
Aerrane (isoflurane)	Baxter	FDG9623
Aspirator tube assemblies for calibrated microcapillary pipettes	Sigma	A5177-5EA
Atipam 5 mg/ml	Eurovet Animal Health BV	N/A	0.5 mg/kg
Baytril 25 mg/ml (enrofloksacin)	Bayer	N/A	5-10 mg/kg
Borosilicate glass capillaries with filament GC100TF-15	Harvard Apparatus Limited	30-0039	injection capillary
Bupivacaine 25 mg/ml	Advanz Pharma	N/A	0.25% in  0.9% NaCl
Butomidor 10 mg/ml (butorphanol  tartrate)	Orion Pharma	N/A	1 mg/kg
CELLSTAR Tissue Cell Culture Dish 35-mm	Greiner Bio-One	627160
CELLSTAR Tissue Cell Culture Dish 60-mm	Greiner Bio-One	628160
CellTram Oil	Eppendorf	5176 000.025
Cepetor (Medetomidine) 1 mg/ml	cp-pharma	N/A	0.5 mg/kg
Chorulon, Human Chorionic Gonadotrophin	Intervet	N/A	150 IU/ ml ml 0.9% NaCl
DMEM low glucose	Sigma Aldrich	D6048
DNase, RNase-free	A&A Biotechnology	1009-100
EmbryoMax Filtered Light Mineral Oil	Sigma	ES-005-C
Envelope protein coding plasmid for lentiviral vectors (VSVg plasmid)	ADDGENE	14888
FemtoJet	Eppendorf	4i /5252 000.013
Fetal Bovine Serum	Sigma Aldrich	F9665-500ML
Folligon, Pregnant Mare’s Serum Gonadotropin	Intervet	N/A	125 IU/ml in .9% NaCl
HEK 293T cells	ATCC	ATCC CRL-3216
Hyaluronidase from Bovine Testis	Sigma	H4272-30MG	0.5 mg/ml in M2 medium
Inverted Microscope	Zeiss	Axiovert 200
Ketamine 100mg/ml	Biowet Pulawy	N/A	50 mg/kg
Liquid Paraffin	Merck Millipore	8042-47-5
M16 medium EmbryoMax	Sigma	MR-016-D
M2 medium	Sigma	M7167
Magnesium Chloride 1M	Sigma Aldrich	63069-100ML
Microforge	Narishige	MF-900
Mineral Oil	Sigma	M8410-500ML
NaCl 0.9%	POLPHARMA OTC	N/A	sterile, 5ml ampules
Operation microscope	Inami Ophthalmic Instruments	Deca-21
Packaging system coding plasmid for lentiviral vectors  (delta R8.2 plasmid)	ADDGENE	12263
PEI reagent (Polyethylenimine, Mw ~ 25,000,),	Polysciences, Inc	23966-1
Penicilin-streptomycin	Sigma Aldrich	P0781-100ML
Phosphate Buffered Saline, pH 7.4, liquid, sterile-filtered, suitable for cell culture	Sigma Aldrich	806552-500ML
Puller	Sutter Instrument Co.	P-97
Reflex Clip Applier/Reflex Clips	World Precision Instruments	500345/500346
Safil, polyglycolic acid, braided, coated, absorbable threads	B.Braun Surgical	1048029
Stereomicroscope	Olympus	SZX16
Surgical Sewing Thread	B.Braun	C1048040
SYBR Green PCR Master Mix	Applied Biosystem	4334973
Tolfedine 4% (tolfenamic acid)	Vetoquinol	N/A	2 mg/kg
TransferMan NK2	Eppendorf	N/A
Trypsin EDTA solution	Sigma Aldrich	T3924-500ML
Ultracentrifuge	Beckman Coulter	Optima L-100 XP
VacuTip	Eppendorf	5175108.000	holders capillary
Vita-POS	Ursapharm	N/A	eye ointment
Warming Plate	Semic	N/A
Watchmaker Forceps	VWR	470018-868