用Cre/LoxP和CRISPR基因工程技术构建猪肌肉生长抑制素双等位基因敲除细胞系北大核心CSCD

肌肉生长抑制素(myostatin,Mstn)基因失活可引起哺乳动物的肌肉增生,但其调控机制尚不清楚,且缺乏可靠的试验材料验证Mstn相关分子通路的变化。本研究所用PK3108细胞系是在野生型PK15细胞系的基础上成功靶向敲除一条等位基因,在其靶位点敲入标记基因,敲除了204bp的外显子3序列,LoxP锚定在其标记基因两侧。利用Cre/LoxP重组酶删除系统删除插入PK3108Mstn靶位点的标记,借助流式细胞仪和荧光蛋白甄别得到无标记的过渡型细胞系PK3108-2。将Cas9/sgRNA表达载体和供体DNA共转染PK3108-2,借助G418抗性筛选和倒置荧光显微镜挑选出仅带阳性标记的克隆L18,对其基因组进行PCR产物凝胶电泳与PCR产物测序,证明克隆L18在预设位点发生同源重组;对其蛋白质进行Western印迹实验表明,Mstn被成功地敲除失活。综上结果证明,本研究实现了双等位基因的精准敲除,构建了Mstn双敲除梯度回复表达细胞系。本研究为揭示Mstn的作用机制提供理想的实验材料,也为双等位基因的敲除提供了可借鉴的技术路线。     

CRISPR/Cas9介导的同源重组技术构建猪肌抑素基因敲除细胞系

肌抑素是肌肉增生的负调控因子,为改良家畜产肉性状的重要候选基因。本研究设计了Cas9/sgRNA表达载体与供体DNA,通过电转染方法将其导入猪PK15细胞,经G418抗性筛选和荧光蛋白标记甄别,筛选到带阳性标记的细胞克隆。通过跨界PCR、长距离PCR、Western印迹、Southern印迹及PCR产物测序,证明了猪肌抑素的第3外显子序列特异性同源重组事件的发生。在猪肌抑素的第3外显子区域找到了1个有效的CRISPR/Cas9打靶位点,带阳性标记的细胞克隆经过多次筛选分离,获得了肌抑素单等位基因失活的稳定细胞系,为深入研究肌抑素的功能提供了重要的实验材料。     

Cre-loxP重组系统删除内源性选择标记基因的效能评价

选择标记的使用和残留可引起消费者对转基因生物环境安全和产品安全的担忧,建立消除选择标记的有效对策甚为必要.本研究的目标是评价Cre-LoxP重组系统删除内源性选择标记基因的效能,为猪安全转基因研究提供实验依据和技术支撑.本文所用的打靶载体ΔMSTN含有LoxP位点锚定的选择标记表达框(LoxP-CMV-NeoR-IRES-EGFP-LoxP). 经电穿孔将该打靶载体导入猪肾PK15细胞,经G418筛选,获得稳定整合该载体、EGFP表达均一的单克隆细胞系. 将Cre重组酶表达载体pTurbo-Cre导入该细胞系,借助流式分选（FACS）、终点PCR、荧光定量PCR、TA克隆与测序等手段,证明Cre-LoxP重组系统可在猪细胞内高效介导内源性选择标记基因的删除反应,EGFP水平的删除效率达到46.1 %,DNA水平的删除效率则达到97 %.本文的研究结果为消除选择标记的安全隐患提供了可靠的解决方案,为建立猪安全转基因技术提供了重要的科学依据.     

改良型痘苗病毒安卡拉株表达系统可删除筛选标记的双表达穿梭载体

为了构建改良型痘苗病毒安卡拉株表达系统可删除筛选标记的双表达穿梭载体,利用Cre/LoxP DNA重组系统以及本实验室表达Cre酶的BHK-21细胞系 (BHK-Cre),以大肠杆菌黄嘌呤-鸟嘌呤磷酸核糖转移酶 (Eco gpt) 为筛选标记构建可删除筛选标记的双表达穿梭载体pLR-gpt。将Eco gpt 基因以及调控其表达的启动子基因置于2个同向的LoxP位点之间,2个独立的多克隆位点位于2个LoxP位点之外,最终获得的重组病毒可以在BHK-Cre细胞系上删除筛选标记Eco gpt。为了验证系统的有效     

无标记转Fat-1基因真核表达载体的构建及转基因绵羊细胞系的建立

为了建立无筛选标记基因的转Fat-1基因绵羊细胞系,本研究将PCR克隆得到的Fat-1基因,合成的attB、Loxp序列并克隆入pN1-EGFP框架载体,得到可删除筛选标记基因的pEGFP-N1-Fat-1真核表达载体。体外转录合成phiC31整合酶mRNA并与线性化的pEGFP-N1-Fat-1载体共转染绵羊胎儿皮肤成纤维细胞,G418筛选得到表达绿色荧光的单克隆,再利用pET-28a-His-NLS-TAT-Cre质粒诱导Cre重组蛋白表达,将纯化后的Cre穿膜肽转导表达绿色荧光的单克隆细胞,将荧光淬灭的细胞系扩繁,提取基因组DNA,进行PCR及测序鉴定,得到无标记转Fat-1基因绵羊胎儿皮肤成纤维细胞系,为生产无筛选标记基因的转基因绵羊奠定基础。     

地衣芽胞杆菌FLP/FRT基因编辑系统的构建及验证

地衣芽胞杆菌有效的基因编辑工具有限,为了拓展和丰富其基因编辑手段,在地衣芽胞杆菌中构建一个抗性标记可重复使用的FLP/FRT基因编辑系统,并通过敲除α-淀粉酶基因amyL、蛋白酶基因aprE及敲入外源透明颤菌血红蛋白基因vgb对该系统进行初步验证。首先以温敏质粒pNZT1为载体分别构建amyL和aprE基因敲除质粒pNZTT-AFKF和pNZTT-EFKF,两个敲除质粒各自包含针对目标基因的同源臂、抗性基因及同向的FRT位点;将敲除质粒转化地衣芽胞杆菌并经过两次同源交换过程实现目标基因的敲除;最后导入一个FLP重组酶表达质粒通过FLP/FRT系统的重组作用介导抗性基因的回收。为进一步验证本系统的实用性及编辑效率,构建了包含透明颤菌血红蛋白编码基因vgb表达盒及基因组丙酮酸甲酸裂解酶编码基因pflB敲除盒的重组质粒pNZTK-PFTF-vgb,并以此进行外源基因vgb在基因组上的定向敲入。结果显示,成功敲除amyL及aprE并回收了抗性标记卡那霉素基因,敲除后淀粉酶活和蛋白酶活分别减少95.3%和80.4%;vgb基因成功整合入基因组pflB位点并回收了抗性标记四环素基因,并利用荧光定量PCR技术检测到vgb的整合表达。文中首次建立了一个适用于地衣芽胞杆菌的、抗性标记可重复使用的FLP/FRT基因编辑系统,并进行了基因敲除及基因敲入验证,为地衣芽胞杆菌遗传改造提供了良好的方法参考。     

利用CRISPR/Cas9系统构建Tiki1基因修饰猪模型

Tiki1基因是哈佛大学儿童医学院贺熹教授实验室发现的一个对蛙头部的诱导起到决定性作用的新基因,但Tiki1基因在小鼠等啮齿类动物中缺失,因此无法利用小鼠等小动物来研究其在哺乳动物中的作用.本文利用CRISPR/Cas9系统结合体细胞克隆技术构建Tiki1基因修饰猪模型,研究Tiki1基因在猪发育中的作用.我们利用贺熹教授团队提供的人Tiki1基因序列,在猪的基因组数据库中比对出与其同源性最高的一段序列设计2个靶位点(g1和g2).以设计的靶位点构建打靶质粒转染猪胎儿成纤维细胞,经细胞筛选、PCR扩增及测序共鉴定了52个单细胞克隆株.最终选择靶位点g1为纯合双敲的5个单细胞克隆株和靶位点g2为纯合双敲的3个单细胞克隆株作为构建Tiki1基因敲除猪的核供体.我们共计构建了720个重组胚胎,分别植入3头代孕母猪,其中有1头经B超检测成功怀孕并妊娠到期产下13头发育正常的克隆猪,经测序鉴定其中12头为Tiki1基因双敲除猪模型,Tiki1基因敲除克隆猪健康存活至今.结果表明Tiki1基因对于猪早期发育的作用机理不同于蛙,其在猪早期发育的过程中的具体作用机理有待后续进一步的深入研究.     

CRISPR/Cas9技术制备猪肌肉生长抑制素基因敲除细胞

采用CRISPR/Cas9技术制备质粒HRX-2MCS和PX330,两种质粒转染湖北白猪胎儿成纤维细胞,G418筛选抗性细胞株。收集培养细胞提取总DNA,分子定位PCR法检测绿色荧光蛋白(GFP)基因在猪肌肉生长抑制素(MSTN)基因外显子上的定位整合情况,得到T1靶位点整合细胞5株和T3靶位点整合细胞3株。Q-PCR定量分析结果表明3108号阳性细胞株MSTN基因m RNA表达量减少50%,实验获得的基因敲除细胞可以用于体细胞核移植法制备MSTN基因敲除猪的研究。     

一种用于提高基因打靶效率的双荧光筛选策略

同源重组介导的基因打靶技术因其准确性高、引入的突变可以预测,已经成为功能基因组研究的重要工具。但是在真核生物体内,天然同源重组的概率极低,对后续的筛选和鉴别造成很大困扰。因此,建立一个广谱性的高效筛选策略极为重要。研究基于"双荧光"的可视化筛选,通过提高筛选效率,从而建立了一种显著提高同源重组打靶效率的新策略。该策略以绿色荧光蛋白基因和新霉素基因为正筛选标记,以红色荧光蛋白基因为负筛选标记。经过G418筛选后,挑取仅表达绿色荧光蛋白的抗性克隆,用于跨界PCR检测。研究尝试运用上述新策略,借助CRISPR/Cas9技术,对猪肌抑素基因进行同源重组介导的基因打靶。在选取的T1和T2两个靶位点处,"双荧光"策略筛选的细胞阳性率分别达到80.5%和86.7%,筛选效率得到显著提高。研究建立的"双荧光"可视化筛选策略具有高效性和广谱性,在动物基因编辑领域具有广阔的应用前景。     

卡介苗阿拉伯糖苷转移酶embC基因敲除株的构建和初步鉴定

目的采用基因敲除技术构建了卡介苗embC基因缺失株。方法从卡介苗基因组中扩增出embC基因,定向插入自杀质粒p2NIL中,切除embC基因中约1000bp片段使其失活,再定向插入标记片段,筛选鉴定阳性克隆,电穿孔转入卡介苗,筛选重组菌株。结果PCR和酶切鉴定证明构建成功用于基因打靶的置换型自杀质粒,并筛选成功获得重组卡介苗。结论获得了卡介苗embC基因敲除株,为进一步研究对卡介苗免疫活性的影响奠定了基础。     

Universal highly efficient conditional knockout system in Leishmania,with a focus on untranscribed region preservation

Trypanosomatids are divergent eukaryotes of high medical and economical relevance. Their biology exhibits original features that remain poorly understood; particularly, Leishmania is known for its high degree of genomic plasticity that makes genomic manipulation challenging. CRISPR‐Cas9 has been applied successfully to these parasites providing a robust tool to study non‐essential gene functions. Here, we have developed a versatile inducible system combining Di‐Cre recombinase and CRISPR‐Cas9 advantages. Cas9 is used to integrate the LoxP sequences, and the Cre‐recombinase catalyses the recombination between LoxP sites, thereby excising the target gene. We used a Leishmania mexicana cell line expressing Di‐Cre, Cas9, and T7 polymerase and then transfected donor DNAs and single guide RNAs as polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products. Because the location of LoxP sequences in the genomic DNA can interfere with the function and localisation of certain proteins of interest, we proposed to target the least transcribed regions upstream and/or downstream the gene of interest. To do so, we developed “universal” template plasmids for donor DNA cassettes with or without a tag, where LoxP sequences may be located either immediately upstream the ATG and downstream the stop codon of the gene of interest, or in the least transcribed areas of intergenic regions. Our methodology is fast, PCR‐based (molecular cloning‐free), highly efficient, versatile, and able to overcome the problems posed by genomic plasticity in Leishmania.     

Establishing a dual knock-out cell line by lentivirus based combined CRISPR/Cas9 and Loxp/Cre system

The clustered regulatory interspersed short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein (Cas) system has been widely used for gene knock-out. Lentiviral vectors have been commonly used as a delivery method for this system, however, prolonged Cas9/sgRNA expression due to lentiviral integration can lead to accumulating off-target mutations. To solve this issue in engineering a gene knock-out cell line, this study established a novel system, which was composed of two lentiviral vectors. One lentiviral vector carried simultaneously sgRNAs and CRISPR/Cas9 expression cassettes targeting single or multiple gene(s); the other lentiviral vector carried Cre that could remove excess sgRNAs and Cas9 expression cassettes in the genome after gene targeting was achieved. To prove the principle, two candidate genes, extracellular matrix protein 1 (ECM1) and progranulin (PGRN), both highly expressed in MDA-MB-231 cells, were selected for testing the novel system. A dual knock-out of ECM1 and PGRN was successfully achieved in MDA-MB-231 cell line, with the sgRNAs and Cas9 expression cassettes being removed by Cre. This system should have great potential in applications for multiple genes knock-out in vitro.     

Generation and characterization of the PKC gamma-Cre mouse line

PKCgamma is a protein kinase C (PKC) isoform that is expressed in the central nervous system (CNS). We generated a PKCgamma-Cre mouse line and characterized the expression and activity of the Cre protein. Our studies show that Cre expression largely recapitulates the endogenous expression of PKCgamma. Several major sites of Cre expression are the cerebral cortex, hippocampus, thalamus, amygdala, and spinal cord. Examination of PKCgamma-Cre/ROSA26 mice reveals a similar X-gal staining pattern in the CNS, indicating that Cre recombinase is capable of removing LoxP sites in vivo. These data indicate that the PKCgamma-Cre mouse line could be a useful reagent for generating Cre-mediated tissue-specific knockouts in the CNS.     

Muscle growth after postdevelopmental myostatin gene knockout

Constitutive myostatin gene knockout in mice causes excessive muscle growth during development. To examine the effect of knocking out the myostatin gene after muscle has matured, we generated mice in which myostatin exon 3 was flanked by loxP sequences (Mstn[f/f]) and crossed them with mice bearing a tamoxifen-inducible, ubiquitously expressed Cre recombinase transgene. At 4 mo of age, Mstn[f/f]/Cre+ mice that had not received tamoxifen had a 50-90% reduction in myostatin expression due to basal Cre activity but were not hypermuscular relative to Mstn[w/w]/Cre+ mice (homozygous for wild-type myostatin gene). Three months after tamoxifen treatment (initiated at 4 mo of age), muscle mass had not changed from the pretreatment level in Mstn[w/w]/Cre+ control mice. Tamoxifen administration to 4-mo-old Mstn[f/f]/Cre+ mice reduced myostatin mRNA expression to less than 1% of normal, which increased muscle mass approximately 25% over the following 3 mo in both male and female mice (P<0.005 vs. control). Fiber hypertrophy appeared to be sufficient to explain the increase in muscle mass. The pattern of expression of genes encoding the various myosin heavy-chain isoforms was unaffected by postdevelopmental myostatin knockout. We conclude that, even after developmental muscle growth has ceased, knockout of the myostatin gene induces a significant increase in muscle mass.     

Gene targeting restricted to mouse striated muscle lineage.

Spatially and temporally regulated somatic mutations can be achieved by using the Cre/LoxP recombination system of bacteriophage P1. In order to develop gene knockouts restricted to striated muscle, we generated a transgenic mouse line expressing Cre recombinase under the control of the human alpha-skeletal actin promoter. Specific excision of a loxP-flanked gene was demonstrated in striated muscle, heart and skeletal muscle, in a pattern very similar to the expression of the endogenous alpha-skeletal actin gene. Therefore, the reported transgenic line can be used to target inactivation or activation of a given gene to the skeletal muscle lineage.     

Long-range chromosomal engineering is more efficient <Emphasis Type="Italic">in vitro</Emphasis> than <Emphasis Type="Italic">in vitro</Emphasis>

Cre/LoxP mediated chromosomal engineering in embryonic stem (ES) cells has a variety of applications, including the creation of model systems for studying aneuploidy. Targeted meiotic recombination (TAMERE) was proposed as a high efficiency in vivo alternative to effect Cre-mediated recombination, in which Cre recombinase under control of the Synaptonemal Complex 1 promoter is expressed during male meiosis in transgenic mice. TAMERE has been successfully used with LoxP sites up to 100 kb apart. We tested TAMERE for a chromosome engineering application in which LoxP sequences were integrated into sites 3.9 Mb apart on the same (cis) or opposite (trans) copies of mouse Chromosome 16 (MMU16). TAMERE was ineffective in generating either a deletion or a translocation in vivo. The TAMERE method may be of limited use for large genomic rearrangements. The desired translocation was achieved with an in vitro method that can be used in any ES cell line. Mice produced from the reciprocal duplication/deletion of MMU16 in a region homologous to human chromosome 21 provide models that are useful in studies of Down syndrome.     

Transvection effects involving DNA methylation during meiosis in the mouse

High efficiencies of recombination between LoxP elements were initially recorded when the Cre recombinase was expressed in meiotic spermatocytes. However, it was unexpectedly found that LoxP recombination fell to very low values at the second generation of mice expressing Cre during meiosis. The inability of the LoxP elements to serve as recombination substrates was correlated with cytosine methylation, initially in LoxP and transgene sequences, but later extending for distances of at least several kilobases into chromosomal sequences. It also affected the allelic locus, implying a transfer of structural information between alleles similar to the transvection phenomenon described in Drosophila. Once initiated following Cre-LoxP interaction, neither cis-extension nor transvection of the methylated state required the continuous expression of Cre, as they occurred both in germinal and somatic cells and in the fraction of the offspring that had not inherited the Sycp1-Cre transgene. Therefore, these processes depend on a physiological mechanism of establishment and extension of an epigenetic state, for which they provide an experimental model.