Hostname: page-component-5c6d5d7d68-wtssw Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-08-21T02:11:30.734Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Developmental rate and allocation of transgenic cells in rabbit chimeric embryos

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2008

P. Chrenek*
Affiliation:
Slovak Agricultural Research Centre, Nitra, Slovak Republic.
A.V. Makarevich
Affiliation:
Slovak Agricultural Research Centre, Nitra, Slovak Republic.
M. Bauer
Affiliation:
Slovak Agricultural Research Centre, Nitra, Slovak Republic.
R. Jurcik
Affiliation:
Slovak Agricultural Research Centre, Nitra, Slovak Republic.
*
1All correspondence to: P. Chrenek. Slovak Agricultural Research Centre, Nitra, Slovak Republic.

Summary

The objective of this study was to compare developmental capacity of rabbit chimeric embryos and the allocation of the EGFP gene expression to the embryoblast (ICM) or embryonic shield. We produced chimeric embryos (TR<>N) by synchronous transfer of two or three blastomeres at the 16-cell stage from transgenic (TR) into normal host embryos (N) at the same stage. In the control group, two to three non-transgenic blastomeres were used to produce chimeric embryos. The TR embryos were produced by microinjection of EGFP into both pronuclei of fertilized rabbit eggs. The developmental rate and allocation of EGFP-positive cells of the reconstructed chimeric embryos was controlled at blastocyst (96 h PC) and embryonic shield (day 6) stage.

All chimeric embryos (120/120, 100%) developed up to blastocyst stage. Using fluorescent microscope, we detected green signal (EGFP expression). In 90 chimeric (TR<>N) embryos (75%). Average total number of cells in chimeric embryos at blastocyst stage was 175 ± 13.10, of which 58 ± 2.76 cells were found in the ICM area. The number of EGFP-positive cells in the ICM area was 24 ± 5.02 (35%). After the transfer of 50 chimeric rabbit embryos at the 16-cell stage, 20 embryos (40%) were flushed from five recipients on day 6 of pregnancy, of which five embryos (25%) were EGFP positive at the embryonic shield stage.

Our results demonstrate that transgenic blastomeres in synchronous chimeric embryos reconstructed from TR embryos have an ability to develop and colonize ICM and embryonic shield area.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2008

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Boediono, A., Suzuki, T., Li, L.Y. & Godke, R.A. (1999). Offspring born from chimeras reconstructed from parthenogenetic and in vitro fertilized bovine embryos. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 53, 159–70.3.0.CO;2-X>CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chan, A.W.S., Kukolj, G., Skalka, A.M. & Bremel, R.D. (1999). Timing of DNA integration, transgenic mosaicism and pronuclear microinjection. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 52, 406–13.3.0.CO;2-P>CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chrenek, P. & Makarevich, A. (2005). Production of rabbit chimeric embryos by aggregation of zona-free nuclear transfer blastomeres. Zygote 13, 3944.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chrenek, P., Vasicek, D., Makarevich, A., Jurcik, R., Suvegova, K., Bauer, M., Parkanyi, V., Rafay, J., Batorova, A. & Paleyanda, R.K. (2005). Increased transgene integration efficiency upon microinjection of DNA into both pronuclei of rabbit embryos. Transgenic Res. 14, 417–28.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ducibella, T., Albertini, D.F., Anderson, E. & Briggers, J. (1975). The preimplantation mammalian embryo: characterization of intracellular junctions and their appearance during development. Dev. Biol. 45, 231–50.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Duszewska, A.M., Lipinski, D., Piliszek, A., Slomski, R., Plawski, A., Wojdan, J., Gawrin, W., Juzwa, W., Zeyland, J., Wenta-Muchalska, E. & Reklewski, Z. (2004). Controversial aspect of using GFP as a marker for the production of transgenic cattle. Pol. J. Vet. Sci. 7, 241–9.Google ScholarPubMed
Giles, J.R. & Foote, R.H. (1995). Rabbit blastocyst: allocation of cells to the inner cell mass and trophectoderm. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 41, 204–11.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McLaren, A. (1975). Sex chimaerism and germ cell distribution in a series of chimeric mice. J. Embryol. Exp. Morphol. 33, 205–16.Google Scholar
Moore, N.M., Adams, C.E. & Rowson, L.E.A. (1968). Developmental potential of single blastomeres of the rabbit egg. J. Reprod. Fertil. 17, 527–31.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pitts, J.D. & Burk, R.R. (1976). Specificity of junction communication between animal cells. Nature 267, 762–4.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rosochacki, S.J., Kozikova, L.V., Korwin-Kossakowski, M., Matejczyk, M., Poloszynowicz, J. & Duszewska, A.M. (2003). Noninvasive fluorescent screening of microinjected bovine embryos to predict transgene integration. Folia Biologica (Krakow) 51, 97104.Google ScholarPubMed
Shimada, H., Kaname, T., Suzuki, M., Hitoshi, Y., Araki, K., Imaizum, T. & Yamamura, K-I. (1999). Comparison of ES cell fate in sandwiched aggregates and co-cultured aggregates during blastocyst formation by monitored GFP expression. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 52, 376–82.3.0.CO;2-U>CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wang, B., Lazaris, A., Lindenbaum, M., Stewart, S., Co, D., Perez, C., Drayer, J. & Karatzas, C.N. (2002). Expression of a reporter gene after microinjection of mammalian artificial chromosome into pronuclei of bovine zygotes. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 60, 433–8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Well, K.D. & Powell, A.M. (2000). Blastomeres from somatic cell nuclear transfer embryos are not allocated randomly in chimeric blastocysts. Cloning 2, 922.CrossRefGoogle Scholar