In vivo excision and amplification of large human genomic segments using the Cre/loxP-and large T antigen/SV40 ori-mediated machinery

In vivo excision and amplification of pre-determined large genomic segments, directly from the genome of a natural host, can be a powerful tool for obtaining the genomic sequences with minimum rearrangements. In this study, an in vivo excision and amplification system in human BJAB cells was devised by combining the Cre/loxP system of bacteriophage P1 and the large T antigen/SV40 ori system of Simian virus 40. Two loxP sequences, each of which serves as a recognition site for recombinase Cre, were integrated unidirectionally into 5′- and 3′-untranslated regions (UTRs) of the human iNOS. An SV40 ori sequence, which serves as a conditional replication system, was inserted between the loxP sites. Trans-acting genes cre and large T antigen, which were under the control of a tetracycline responsive promoter, were also inserted into the 5′- and 3′-UTRs of the iNOS, respectively, by homologous recombination. Upon induction by doxycycline, the 45-kb iNOS genomic fragment of human chromosome 17 flanked by two loxP sites was excised and amplified up to about 45 copies per cell. Our method is very useful for obtaining large genomic fragments in quantities directly from human cells without using foreign hosts. Therefore, our approach can be used effectively for gap sequencing of a genome, gene therapy, and functional analysis of unknown genes in human cells.