<p class="jove_content">We thank Nicki Fox and Aloisia Schmid for their contributions to development of these protocols.  This work was supported by an NIH RO1 grant to K.Z., NS28182.</p>

<ol>
	<li>Patel, N. H. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Imaging+neuronal+subsets+and+other+cell+types+in+whole-mount+Drosophila+embryos+and+larvae+using+antibody+probes.">Imaging neuronal subsets and other cell types in whole-mount Drosophila embryos and larvae using antibody probes.</a> <em style='font-style: italic'>Methods Cell Biol</em>. <b>44</b>, 445-487 (1994).</li><li>Desai, C. J., Gindhart, J. G., Goldstein, L. S., Zinn, K. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Receptor+tyrosine+phosphatases+are+required+for+motor+axon+guidance+in+the+Drosophila+embryo.">Receptor tyrosine phosphatases are required for motor axon guidance in the Drosophila embryo.</a> <em style='font-style: italic'>Cell</em>. <b>84</b>, 599-609 (1996).</li><li>Sun, Q., Schindelholz, B., Knirr, M., Schmid, A., Zinn, K. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Complex+genetic+interactions+among+four+receptor+tyrosine+phosphatases+regulate+axon+guidance+in+Drosophila.">Complex genetic interactions among four receptor tyrosine phosphatases regulate axon guidance in Drosophila.</a> <em style='font-style: italic'>Molecular and cellular neurosciences</em>. <b>17</b>, 274-291 (2001).</li><li>Schmid, A., Schindelholz, B., Zinn, K. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Combinatorial+RNAi:+a+method+for+evaluating+the+functions+of+gene+families+in+Drosophila.">Combinatorial RNAi: a method for evaluating the functions of gene families in Drosophila.</a> <em style='font-style: italic'>Trends in neurosciences</em>. <b>25</b>, 71-74 (2002).</li><li>Fox, A. N., Zinn, K. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=The+heparan+sulfate+proteoglycan+syndecan+is+an+in+vivo+ligand+for+the+Drosophila+LAR+receptor+tyrosine+phosphatase.">The heparan sulfate proteoglycan syndecan is an in vivo ligand for the Drosophila LAR receptor tyrosine phosphatase.</a> <em style='font-style: italic'>Curr Biol</em>. <b>15</b>, 1701-1711 (2005).</li></ol>

<p class="jove_content">We hope that this video demonstration has displayed our methods for live embryo dissection and staining in sufficient detail that they can now be readily executed by any person who has some experience in <em>Drosophila</em> genetics and embryology.  Of course, considerable practice will still be required, primarily for the dissections themselves.  In our experience, every person who learns the live dissection methods will create a subtly different dissection protocol that allows him/her to most rapidly generate high-qual...

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<td>Borosilicate Tubing With Filament </td>
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<td>Narishige model PC-10 needle puller</td>
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<td>Narishige</td>
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live dissection of <em>drosophila</em> embryos: streamlined methods for screening mutant collections by antibody staining

<em>Drosophila</em> embryos between stages 14 and 17 of embryonic development can be readily dissected to generate "fillet" preparations.  In these preparations, the central nervous system runs down the middle, and is flanked by the body walls. Many different phenotypes have been examined using such preparations.  In most cases, the fillets were generated by dissection of antibody-stained fixed whole-mount embryos.  These "fixed dissections" have some disadvantages, however.  They are time-consuming to execute, and it is difficult to sort mutant (GFP-negative) embryos from stocks in which mutations are maintained over GFP balancer chromosomes. Since 2002, our group has been conducting deficiency and ectopic expression screens to identify ligands for orphan receptors.  In order to do this, we developed streamlined protocols for live embryo dissection and antibody staining of collections containing hundreds of balanced lines.  We have concluded that it is considerably more efficient to examine phenotypes in large collections of stocks by live dissection than by fixed dissection.   Using the protocol described here, a single trained individual can screen up to 10 lines per day for phenotypes, examining 4-7 mutant embryos from each line under a compound microscope.  This allows the identification of mutations conferring subtle, low-penetrance phenotypes, since up to 70 hemisegments per line are scored at high magnification with a 40X water-immersion lens.

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Live Dissection of Drosophila Embryos: Streamlined Methods for Screening Mutant Collections by Antibody Staining at JoVE.com

Live Dissection of Drosophila Embryos: Streamlined Methods for Screening Mutant Collections by Antibody Staining

<p class="jove_content">We describe a streamlined protocol for generating "fillet" preparations of Drosophila embryos of specific genotypes.  This protocol allows efficient execution of   a variety of genetic screens.  It also allows excellent visualization of structures in the late embryo.</p>

Live Dissection of <em>Drosophila</em> Embryos: Streamlined Methods for Screening Mutant Collections by Antibody Staining

Drosophila embryos between stages 14 and 17 of embryonic development can be readily dissected to generate "fillet" preparations.  In these preparations, ...

live-dissection-drosophila-embryos-streamlined-methods-for-screening

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JoVE Journal

Biology

14.2K Views.  California Institute of Technology. We describe a streamlined protocol for generating "fillet" preparations of Drosophila embryos of specific genotypes. This protocol allows efficient execution of a variety of genetic screens. It also allows excellent visualization of structures in the late embryo.