斑马鱼精子冻存与复苏实验方法与流程

斑马鱼是研究胚胎发育及其遗传机制的重要模式脊椎动物。目前人们已经积累了大量的突变体和转基因鱼系, 如何安全、妥善地长期保存这些品系是每一个研究斑马鱼的实验室都会面临的问题。精子冻存与复苏技术是目前最为简单有效的一种长期保存斑马鱼遗传品系的方法。应用这一技术不仅可以节省大量的鱼房空间与人力、物力, 使鱼系的使用与保存更加灵活和持久, 更重要的是能够防止珍贵鱼系的意外丢失, 为鱼系保种提供额外的保障。这类方法一般是通过体外挤出精子或研磨精巢获取新鲜的精子, 用适量的冻存液混匀后, 分装保存在液氮罐中。需要时可以随时通过体外授精的方法使精子复苏。经过30年的发展, 随着冷冻保护剂的不断改良和冻存与复苏条件的不断优化, 斑马鱼精子冻存与复苏技术已逐渐成熟。文章简单回顾了斑马鱼精子冻存与复苏技术的历史与发展, 并重点介绍本实验室自2005年以来常规使用的斑马鱼精子冻存与复苏的方法及具体流程。
补充资料 ：冻存与复苏实验指南 [视频]     

斑马鱼资源的开发保藏与国家斑马鱼资源中心

斑马鱼是一种新兴的脊椎模式动物。在过去的30年中,斑马鱼已被广泛应用于生命科学、健康科学、环境农业等诸多科研领域。为了满足不同的科研需要,研究人员开发和利用各种技术创建了大量的斑马鱼基因突变和转基因品系,这些品系已成为开展相关科学研究的宝贵资源。为了更好地保藏和利用这些资源,在全球范围内建设有多个规模不一的斑马鱼资源库。2012年,我国的国家斑马鱼资源中心（http：//zfish.cn）在中国科学院水生生物研究所正式成立。本文将重点介绍全球斑马鱼资源的开发和保藏情况,以及我国国家斑马鱼资源中心的最新建设进展。     

荧光转基因斑马鱼Tg(ttn.2:EGFP)的构建

为了建立一种用于研究肌肉和心脏发育及其相关疾病的绿色荧光蛋白(enhanced green fluorescent protein,EGFP)转基因斑马鱼品系,本研究使用斑马鱼ttn.2基因编码区上游启动子序列和绿色荧光蛋白基因编码序列构建了重组表达载体,并将该载体和Tol2转座酶的加帽mRNA显微共注射入斑马鱼1-细胞期胚胎,通过荧光检测、遗传杂交筛选和分子鉴定等方法,成功建立了能稳定遗传的Tg(ttn.2:EGFP)转基因斑马鱼品系。荧光表达分析及原位杂交分析结果表明,绿色荧光信号在斑马鱼肌肉和心脏组织中特异表达模式与ttn.2基因的mRNA表达一致。通过反向PCR鉴定转基因表达载体在F1代斑马鱼品系中的随机整合位点,结果表明:No.33转基因品系的EGFP基因整合在斑马鱼的4号和11号染色体上,No.34转基因品系则整合在1号染色体上。该荧光转基因斑马鱼品系Tg(ttn.2:EGFP)的成功构建为肌肉和心脏发育以及相关疾病研究提供了一个新的理想实验模型。此外,绿色荧光强烈表达的斑马鱼品系还可以作为一种新的观赏鱼。     

心脏特异表达绿色荧光斑马鱼模型的建立与评估

本课题组前期研究中, 利用斑马鱼cmlc2 (Cardiac myosin light chain 2)基因启动子构建了一个用于斑马鱼心脏组织特异表达外源基因的转基因表达载体pTol2-cmlc2-IRES-EGFP。文章利用该载体构建了一个稳定表达EGFP的转基因斑马鱼品系, 并初步分析了EGFP的表达对该转基因斑马鱼品系的心脏发育和功能的影响。结果表明, 在建立的转基因斑马鱼品系早期胚胎发育过程中, 绿色荧光信号在心脏中特异表达, 该表达模式与原位杂交分析的cmlc2的表达模式结果相同; 该转基因斑马鱼品系的心脏形态及发育生长正常; 进一步通过M-Mode分析心脏生理学功能的结果表明：该转基因品系心动周期、心率、收缩与舒张表面积及表面积缩短率等重要生理指标与正常野生型的斑马鱼对照组相比没有显著差别。以上结果表明该转基因品系中绿色荧光蛋白的表达对斑马鱼心脏的发育和功能没有影响。研究结果为进一步利用该载体建立外源目的基因转基因表达模型, 研究心脏表达基因的功能奠定了重要基础。     

美洲鲥雄性生殖细胞冷冻保存及移植

采用分离细胞冻存和组织块直接冻存2种方法, 进行美洲鲥(American shad, Alosa sapidissima)精巢细胞的长时间冷冻保存(>250d), 并比较分析2种不同冻存方法对美洲鲥雄性生殖细胞的冻存效果。解冻复苏后用Hochest33342和PI共染细胞核, 分析统计各期雄性生殖细胞的存活率, 结果显示组织块冻存方法所得精原干细胞和精母细胞的存活率明显高于分离细胞冻存的; 而精细胞及其他细胞存活率在2种方法间无显著差异; 特别是, 镜检发现组织块冻存方法所得精子存活率高达93.83%, 说明此冻存方法能同时高效地冻存美洲鲥各期生殖细胞, 包括成熟的精子。同时, 将组织块冻存的美洲鲥生殖细胞用PKH26染色标记后移植到出苗第1天的斑马鱼仔鱼中, 在细胞植入后5d仍能在受体中检测到供体细胞, 且有部分供体细胞能与内源生殖细胞共定位, 表明经过长时间冷冻保存的美洲鲥生殖细胞仍具有生殖细胞特性, 且能整合到斑马鱼受体性腺原基。研究结果为进一步开展美洲鲥, 或其他洄游性鱼类的生殖细胞发育、培养及种质资源保存等研究工作奠定了技术理论基础。     

非人灵长类动物精子冻存技术的研究进展

随着生物医学技术的发展,应用非人灵长类动物模型进行基础科学研究日益广泛。与此同时,由于栖息地破坏、狩猎和基因隔离,许多非人灵长类动物濒临灭绝。因此,改进非人灵长类动物精子冻存技术对物种遗传资源的保藏具有重要的意义。本文概述了非人灵长类动物的精液特征,介绍了精液液化和冷冻精子质量评估的方法,分析了冷冻保护剂、冷冻稀释液及冷冻方法等因素对精子冻存效果的影响,总结了目前非人灵长类精子冷冻常用的冷冻保存液和冷冻方法,并对相关精子参数进行了比较,同时探讨了非人灵长类动物精子冻存研究面临的困境,并提出了可行的方案。总之,本文综述了近年来非人灵长类动物精子冻存的重要研究成果,对开发新的冷冻保护剂及改进冷冻技术具有一定的参考价值。     

斑马鱼基因工程的研究进展

对国内外斑马鱼基因工程研究进展。包括最近获得的大批转基因斑马鱼品系、靶向筛选的转基因斑马鱼、斑马鱼转基因技术的发展和斑马鱼基因工程的热点问题与应用前景进行了综述。指出我国已建立日趋成熟的斑马鱼转基因技术、细胞核移植技术和染色体组操作技术,具有斑马鱼细胞遗传学和胚胎学基础,我国有望在不久的将来获得定向整合的基因工程斑马鱼,并推动生物技术应用研究领域的进步和发展。     

一种在紫外敏感型视锥细胞中特异表达tdTomato的转基因斑马鱼系的构建

目的鉴于目前对斑马鱼视锥细胞视蛋白运输机制并不明确,且缺乏相应的抗体,本实验拟构建一种可以在视锥细胞中特异表达荧光的转基因斑马鱼。方法利用编码紫外敏感型视蛋白基因(sws1)的启动子,构建了一种在紫外敏感型视锥细胞中特异表达红色荧光蛋白td Tomato的转基因斑马鱼。同时,将td Tomato荧光蛋白与非洲爪蟾rhodopsin蛋白末端44个氨基酸相融合,将该融合蛋白定位于紫外敏感型视锥细胞的外节段,进而可模拟内源性视蛋白的定位。结果共筛选出三种不同品系的转基因斑马鱼,经过免疫组化分析,确定其中一种转基因品系是正确的目标品系。结论该转基因斑马鱼的构建将会为进一步研究视锥细胞中视蛋白的运输机制提供帮助。     

转基因鱼的研究进展与商业化前景

转基因技术为鱼类育种开辟了新的途径。目前已培育出转生长激素基因鲤、鲑和罗非鱼,转荧光蛋白基因斑马鱼与唐鱼等可稳定遗传的转基因鱼品系,其中快长转生长激素基因鱼的获得对于提高水产养殖的产量与养殖效益具有十分重要的意义。文章简要综述了转基因鱼应用研究的成就、相关技术及生态安全方面的研究进展。显微注射仍是目前基因转植的常用方法,应用转座酶或巨核酸酶介导的转基因新技术可提高基因转植效率与整合率。转基因元件的选择应尽量考虑"全鱼"基因或"自源"基因,以减少转基因鱼食用安全方面的顾虑同时也有利于转植基因的表达与生理功效的发挥。生态安全是转基因鱼商用化面临的最大问题。虽然有研究显示转基因鱼与传统的选育鱼类相比适合度较差,但由于环境与基因型间的相互作用,根据实验室获得的转基因鱼对生态影响的结果,难以预测转基因鱼一旦逃逸会对自然水生态环境产生怎样的影响。因此应建立高度自然化的环境以获得可靠的数据客观评价生态风险,有效的物理拦截、不育化处理等生物学控制策略仍是保证转基因鱼安全应用的关键措施。     

昆明小鼠精子冷冻的研究（简报）

胚胎工程技术是动物品种、品系培育,种质资源保存及转基因动物制备、保种的重要手段。配子的冷冻保存技术目前广泛应用于胚胎工程。和胚胎冷冻相比小鼠精子冷冻技术方便、高效尤其适用于转基因及突变系小鼠的保种。成功的精子冷冻要求复苏后通过体外受精(IVF)获得胚胎,再移植入受     

Oxidative stress in zebrafish (Danio rerio) sperm

Laboratories around the world have produced tens of thousands of mutant and transgenic zebrafish lines. As with mice, maintaining all of these valuable zebrafish genotypes is expensive, risky, and beyond the capacity of even the largest stock centers. Because reducing oxidative stress has become an important aspect of reducing the variability in mouse sperm cryopreservation, we examined whether antioxidants might improve cryopreservation of zebrafish sperm. Four experiments were conducted in this study. First, we used the xanthine-xanthine oxidase (X-XO) system to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS). The X-XO system was capable of producing a stress reaction in zebrafish sperm reducing its sperm motility in a concentration dependent manner (P<0.05). Second, we examined X-XO and the impact of antioxidants on sperm viability, ROS and motility. Catalase (CAT) mitigated stress and maintained viability and sperm motility (P>0.05), whereas superoxide dismutase (SOD) and vitamin E did not (P<0.05). Third, we evaluated ROS in zebrafish spermatozoa during cryopreservation and its effect on viability and motility. Methanol (8%) reduced viability and sperm motility (P<0.05), but the addition of CAT mitigated these effects (P>0.05), producing a mean 2.0 to 2.9-fold increase in post-thaw motility. Fourth, we examined the effect of additional cryoprotectants and CAT on fresh sperm motility. Cryoprotectants, 8% methanol and 10% dimethylacetamide (DMA), reduced the motility over the control value (P<0.5), whereas 10% dimethylformamide (DMF) with or without CAT did not (P>0.05). Zebrafish sperm protocols should be modified to improve the reliability of the cryopreservation process, perhaps using a different cryoprotectant. Regardless, the simple addition of CAT to present-day procedures will significantly improve this process, assuring increased and less variable fertilization success and allowing resource managers to dependably plan how many straws are needed to safely cryopreserve a genetic line.     

Gene transfer into zebrafish by sperm nuclear transplantation

A technique for fertilizing zebrafish eggs by injection of sperm nuclei is described. Eggs that cleave normally can develop into swimming larvae and give rise to fertile adults. If sperm nuclei are preincubated for 20 min with DNA encoding the green fluorescent protein, transgene expression can be detected in all cells of the embryo. The use of condensed sperm nuclei allows injection with a small bore pipette, which is critical for successful injection of the relatively small zebrafish egg. This technique enables the generation of ubiquitously expressing transgenic zebrafish directly by microinjection. Hence, experiments involving transgenic fish can be completed in days, without the need for growing and breeding founders. This technique may also be used to generate transgenic lines, as transgene expression was visible in the offspring of transgenic founders. The method described here is likely to be applicable to other teleosts, such as medaka and salmon.     

Transgenic zebrafish expressing fluorescent proteins in central nervous system neurons

Zebrafish is a powerful model system for investigations of vertebrate neural development. The animal has also become an important model for studies of neuronal function. Both in developmental and functional studies, transgenic zebrafish expressing fluorescent proteins in central nervous system neurons have been playing important roles. We review here the methods for producing transgenic zebrafish. Recent advances in transposon- or bacterial artificial chromosome-based transgenesis greatly facilitate the creation of useful lines. We also present our study on alx -positive neurons to reveal how transgenic zebrafish expressing fluorescent proteins in a specific class of neurons can be used to investigate their development and function.     

Regular Care and Maintenance of a Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Laboratory: An Introduction

This protocol describes regular care and maintenance of a zebrafish laboratory. Zebrafish are now gaining popularity in genetics, pharmacological and behavioural research. As a vertebrate, zebrafish share considerable genetic sequence similarity with humans and are being used as an animal model for various human disease conditions. The advantages of zebrafish in comparison to other common vertebrate models include high fecundity, low maintenance cost, transparent embryos, and rapid development. Due to the spur of interest in zebrafish research, the need to establish and maintain a productive zebrafish housing facility is also increasing. Although literature is available for the maintenance of a zebrafish laboratory, a concise video protocol is lacking. This video illustrates the protocol for regular housing, feeding, breeding and raising of zebrafish larvae. This process will help researchers to understand the natural behaviour and optimal conditions of zebrafish husbandry and hence troubleshoot experimental issues that originate from the fish husbandry conditions. This protocol will be of immense help to researchers planning to establish a zebrafish laboratory, and also to graduate students who are intending to use zebrafish as an animal model.     

Zebrafish models of Tauopathy

Tauopathies are a group of incurable neurodegenerative diseases, in which loss of neurons is accompanied by intracellular deposition of fibrillar material composed of hyperphosphorylated forms of the microtubule-associated protein Tau. A zebrafish model of Tauopathy could complement existing murine models by providing a platform for genetic and chemical screens, in order to identify novel therapeutic targets and compounds with disease-modifying potential. In addition, Tauopathy zebrafish would be useful for hypothesis-driven experiments, especially those exploiting the potential to deploy in vivo imaging modalities. Several considerations, including conservation of specialized neuronal and other cellular populations, and biochemical pathways implicated in disease pathogenesis, suggest that the zebrafish brain is an appropriate setting in which to model these complex disorders. Novel transgenic zebrafish lines expressing wild-type and mutant forms of human Tau in CNS neurons have recently been reported. These studies show evidence that human Tau undergoes disease-relevant changes in zebrafish neurons, including somato-dendritic relocalization, hyperphosphorylation and aggregation. In addition, preliminary evidence suggests that Tau transgene expression can precipitate neuronal dysfunction and death. These initial studies are encouraging that the zebrafish holds considerable promise as a model in which to study Tauopathies. Further studies are necessary to clarify the phenotypes of transgenic lines and to develop assays and models suitable for unbiased high-throughput screening approaches. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled Zebrafish Models of Neurological Diseases.     

Production of Haploid Zebrafish Embryos by In Vitro Fertilization

The zebrafish has become a mainstream vertebrate model that is relevant for many disciplines of scientific study. Zebrafish are especially well suited for forward genetic analysis of developmental processes due to their external fertilization, embryonic size, rapid ontogeny, and optical clarity – a constellation of traits that enable the direct observation of events ranging from gastrulation to organogenesis with a basic stereomicroscope. Further, zebrafish embryos can survive for several days in the haploid state. The production of haploid embryos in vitro is a powerful tool for mutational analysis, as it enables the identification of recessive mutant alleles present in first generation (F1) female carriers following mutagenesis in the parental (P) generation. This approach eliminates the necessity to raise multiple generations (F2, F3, etc.) which involves breeding of mutant families, thus saving the researcher time along with reducing the needs for zebrafish colony space, labor, and the husbandry costs. Although zebrafish have been used to conduct forward screens for the past several decades, there has been a steady expansion of transgenic and genome editing tools. These tools now offer a plethora of ways to create nuanced assays for next generation screens that can be used to further dissect the gene regulatory networks that drive vertebrate ontogeny. Here, we describe how to prepare haploid zebrafish embryos. This protocol can be implemented for novel future haploid screens, such as in enhancer and suppressor screens, to address the mechanisms of development for a broad number of processes and tissues that form during early embryonic stages.