Search

The recent identification of homozygous WNT1 mutations in individuals with osteogenesis imperfecta type XV (OI-XV) has suggested that WNT1 is a key ligand promoting the differentiation and function of bone-forming osteoblasts. Although such an influence was supported by subsequent studies, a mouse model of OI-XV remained to be established. Therefore, we introduced a previously identified disease-causing mutation (G177C) into the murine Wnt1 gene. Homozygous Wnt1G177C/G177C mice were viable and did not display defects in brain development, but the majority of 24-week-old Wnt1G177C/G177C mice had skeletal fractures. This increased bone fragility was not fully explained by reduced bone mass but also by impaired bone matrix quality. Importantly, the homozygous presence of the G177C mutation did not interfere with the osteoanabolic influence of either parathyroid hormone injection or activating mutation of LRP5, the latter mimicking the effect of sclerostin neutralization. Finally, transcriptomic analyses revealed that short-term administration of WNT1 to osteogenic cells induced not only the expression of canonical WNT signaling targets but also the expression of genes encoding extracellular matrix modifiers. Taken together, our data demonstrate that regulating bone matrix quality is a primary function of WNT1. They further suggest that individuals with WNT1 mutations should profit from existing osteoanabolic therapies., Bone Research, 9 (1)

The Cre-mediated genetic switch combines the ability of Cre recombinase to stably invert or excise a DNA fragment depending upon the orientation of flanking mutant loxP sites. In this work, we have tested this strategy in vivo with the aim to generate two conditional knock-in mice for missense mutations in the Impad1 and Clcn7 genes causing two different skeletal dysplasias. Targeting constructs were generated in which the Impad1 exon 2 and an inverted exon 2* and the Clcn7 exon 7 and an inverted exon 7* containing the point mutations were flanked by mutant loxP sites in a head-to-head orientation. When the Cre recombinase is present, the DNA flanked by the mutant loxP sites is expected to be stably inverted leading to the activation of the mutated exon. The targeting vectors were used to generate heterozygous floxed mice in which inversion of the wild-type with the mutant exon has not occurred yet. To generate knock-in mice, floxed animals were mated to a global Cre-deleter mouse strain for stable inversion and activation of the mutation. Unexpectedly the phenotype of homozygous Impad1 knock-in animals overlaps with the lethal phenotype described previously in Impad1 knock-out mice. Similarly, the phenotype of homozygous Clcn7 floxed mice overlaps with Clcn7 knock-out mice. Expression studies by qPCR and RT-PCR demonstrated that mutant mRNA underwent abnormal splicing leading to the synthesis of non-functional proteins. Thus, the skeletal phenotypes in both murine strains were not caused by the missense mutations, but by aberrant splicing. Our data demonstrate that the Cre mediated genetic switch strategy should be considered cautiously for the generation of conditional knock-in mice., PLoS ONE, 14 (3), ISSN:1932-6203

BackgroundIn cardiac ventricular muscle cells, the presence of voltage-gated sodium channels Nav1.5 at the lateral membrane depends in part on the interaction between the dystrophin-syntrophin complex and the Nav1.5 C-terminal PDZ-domain-binding sequence Ser-Ile-Val (SIV motif). α1-Syntrophin, a PDZ-domain adaptor protein, mediates the interaction between Nav1.5 and dystrophin at the lateral membrane of cardiac cells. Using the cell-attached patch-clamp approach on cardiomyocytes expressing Nav1.5 in which the SIV motif is deleted (ΔSIV), sodium current (INa) recordings from the lateral membrane revealed an SIV-motif-independent INa. Since immunostainings have suggested that Nav1.5 is expressed in transverse (T-) tubules, this remaining INa might be conducted by channels in the T-tubules. Of note, a recent study using heterologous expression systems showed that α1-syntrophin also interacts with the Nav1.5 N-terminus, which may explain the SIV-motif independent INa at the lateral membrane of cardiomyocytes.AimTo address the role of α1-syntrophin in regulating the INa at the lateral membrane of cardiac cells.Methods and resultsPatch-clamp experiments in cell-attached configuration were performed on the lateral membranes of wild-type, α1-syntrophin knock-down, and ΔSIV ventricular mouse cardiomyocytes. Compared to wild-type, a reduction of the lateral INa was observed in myocytes from α1-syntrophin knockdown hearts. However, similar to ΔSIV myocytes, a remaining INa was still recorded. In addition, cell-attached INa recordings from lateral membrane did not differ significantly between non-detubulated and detubulated ΔSIV cardiomyocytes. Lastly, we obtained evidence suggesting that cell-attached patch-clamp experiments on the lateral membrane cannot record currents conducted by channels in T-tubules such as calcium channels.ConclusionAltogether, these results suggest the presence of a sub-pool of sodium channels at the lateral membrane of cardiomyocytes that is independent of α1-syntrophin and the PDZ-binding motif of Na 1.5, located in membrane domains outside of T-tubules. The question of a T-tubular pool of Nav1.5 channels however remains open.

The cardiac sodium channel NaV1.5 initiates the action potential (AP) and is essential for conduction. The last three residues of NaV1.5 (Ser-Ile-Val) constitute a PDZ domain-binding motif (SIV) that interacts with PDZ proteins such as syntrophin proteins and SAP97 defining distinct subsets of NaV1.5 multi-protein complexes, respectively at the lateral membrane and the intercalated discs (ID) of cardiomyocytes. Previous results with dystrophin-deficient mice showed that disruption of the dystrophin-syntrophin macromolecular complex impairs excitability and impulse propagation by reducing the expression of NaV1.5 and syntrophin at the lateral membrane of cardiomyocytes. Recently, we investigated the in vivo role of the NaV1.5 SIV motif by characterizing mice bearing a truncation of this motif (ΔSIV). Western blots of ΔSIV hearts displayed reduced levels of NaV1.5, which corresponded to a 35% decrease in cardiomyocyte wholecell INa and AP upstroke velocity. Immunostainings revealed a specific loss of NaV1.5 channels in ΔSIV cardiomyocytes at lateral membranes concomitant to a 60% decrease in INa recorded at the lateral membrane. However, NaV1.5 expression at ID and T-tubules was not altered. No INa decrease was observed at the ID. Epicardial mapping of ΔSIV hearts showed decreased conduction velocity that manifested as prolongation of the QRS interval in ECGs. When SAP97 expression was constitutively suppressed in the heart of knock-out mice, INa and AP maximal upstroke velocity were unchanged. However, AP duration was greatly increased, suggesting that the expression and function of other ion channels is modified. These data reflect the in vivo significance of the PDZ-domain-binding SIV motif in correct expression of NaV1.5 channels at the lateral membrane and underline the functional role of lateral NaV1.5 channels in cardiac conduction. In addition, the results confirm the existence of distinct pools of NaV1.5 channels within the cardiomyocytes and suggest a complex regulation and organization of the NaV1.5 pool at the ID, where compensatory mechanisms could be developped when SAP97 expression is constitutively suppressed.

Conventional approaches to produce transgenic mice recurrently yield unpredictable patterns and levels of transgene expression, a situation calling for the development of new techniques to overcome these drawbacks in the context of overexpression studies. Here we present an efficient method for rapid and reproducible transgenesis using the recombinase mediated cassette exchange (RMCE) (Bouhassira et al.: Blood 90:3332-3344, 1997) procedure. A lox511-EGFP-TK/neo-loxP cassette was placed under the control of the endogenous mouse beta-actin promoter. Heterozygous mice revealed strong and ubiquitous EGFP expression throughout embryogenesis and adulthood. Reproducibly, the same expression pattern was obtained with RMCE when it was used to replace the EGFP-harboring cassette by ECFP or placental alkaline phosphatase (PLAP) reporter genes (DePrimo et al.: Transgenic Res 5:459-466, 1996). Furthermore, the RMCE procedure proved efficient as well in embryonic stem (ES) cells as directly in zygotes. Our results demonstrate ubiquitous expression of floxed transgenes in the endogenous beta-actin locus and they support the general use of the beta-actin locus for targeted transgenesis.

The physiological role of prion protein (PrP) remains unknown. Mice devoid of PrP develop normally but are resistant to scrapie; introduction of a PrP transgene restores susceptibility to the disease. To identify the regions of PrP necessary for this activity, we prepared PrP knockout mice expressing PrPs with amino-proximal deletions. Surprisingly, PrP lacking residues 32–121 or 32–134, but not with shorter deletions, caused severe ataxia and neuronal death limited to the granular layer of the cerebellum as early as 1–3 months after birth. The defect was completely abolished by introducing one copy of a wild-type PrP gene. We speculate that these truncated PrPs may be nonfunctional and compete with some other molecule with a PrP-like function for a common ligand.