This protocol shows how to perform cytoplasmic microinjection in farm animal zygotes. This technique can be used to deliver any solution into the one-cell embryo such as genome editing tools to generate knockout animals.
Cytoplasmic microinjection into one-cell embryos is a very powerful technique. As an example, it enables the delivery of genome editing tools that can create genetic modifications that will be present in every cell of an adult organism. It can also be used to deliver siRNA, mRNAs or blocking antibodies to study gene function in preimplantation embryos. The conventional technique for microinjecting embryos used in rodents consists of a very thin micropipette that directly penetrates the plasma membrane when advanced into the embryo. When this technique is applied to livestock animals it usually results in low efficiency. This is mainly because in contrast to mice and rats, bovine, ovine, and porcine zygotes have a very dark cytoplasm and a highly elastic plasma membrane that makes visualization during injection and penetration of the plasma membrane hard to achieve. In this protocol, we describe a suitable microinjection method for the delivery of solutions into the cytoplasm of cattle zygotes that has proved to be successful for sheep and pig embryos as well. First, a laser is used to create a hole in the zona pellucida. Then a blunt-end glass micropipette is introduced through the hole and advanced until the tip of the needle reaches about 3/4 into the embryo. Then, the plasma membrane is broken by aspiration of cytoplasmic content inside the needle. Finally, the aspirated cytoplasmic content followed by the solution of interest is injected back into the embryonic cytoplasm. This protocol has been successfully used for the delivery of different solutions into bovine and ovine zygotes with 100% efficiency, minimal lysis, and normal blastocysts development rates.
1 – 细胞胚胎显微注射细胞质是一个非常强大的技术。它可用于递送任何溶液进入胚胎,例如,产生基因敲除研究基因功能或产生基因编辑动物。农业最相关的农场动物受精卵具有非常高的脂肪酸组合物,使得它们的细胞质不透明和暗1。他们也有相当的弹性质膜(PM)。这些特点使显微注射用常规的原核/胞浆注射在啮齿类动物具有挑战性,往往不准确使用。
细胞质微注射有超过原核显微注射法的优点,因为它是更容易执行并且也导致了注射的胚胎损伤小,导致更高的2生存能力。此协议的总体目标是演示提供解决方案到农场动物受精卵的细胞质一种成功的方法。到能够执行对家畜胚胎效率高细胞质微注射,激光被用来产生在透明带(ZP),然后一个钝端部玻璃针用于显微注射的孔。这一战略旨在减少注射时印在胚胎的机械损伤。然后,注射针内胞质内容抽吸允许PM的效率和自信破损确保溶液被输送到胚胎的细胞质中。
这种技术已在牛胚胎被成功地用于siRNA递送到合子的细胞质3,4和生成使用群集定期相互间隔短回文重复序列(CRISPR)/ CRISPR相关联的系统9(Cas9)系统5的突变。它也适合(稍加修改)注入牛卵丘封闭的卵母细胞6。这里,我们描述我们的注射方案提供的染料,这可以是适用于注射任何宫IRED溶液注入受精卵,并表明,使用这种技术使得最小裂解并且不影响早期胚胎发育。
受精卵显微注射是引入解决方案集成到哺乳动物胚胎一套行之有效的方法。与一些依赖于物种和实验的目的变化,这种技术可以广泛地使用。我们展示了如何使用激光来帮助一个钝头微量的入口处进行显微注射胞浆内。某些牲畜物种(如牛,羊,和猪)的合子有黑暗的细胞质中,阻碍注射针的可视化一次胚胎内。此外,他们的血浆膜是非常有弹性的,使得与一个斜面尖刺针(通常用于注入啮齿动?…
The authors have nothing to disclose.
Work related to this technique is supported by NIH/NICHD RO1 HD070044 and USDA/NIFA Hatch projects W-3171 and W-2112.
Micropipette puller | Sutter Instrument | P-97 | |
Glass capillary | Sutter instruments | B100-75-10 | These capillaries are used for making the holding and injecting pipettes. Any thick/standard wall borosilicate tubing without filament can be used. |
Microforge | Narishige | MF-9 | Equipped with 10X magnification lense. |
Micromanipulator | Nikon/ Narishige | NT88-V3 | |
Inverted microscope | Nikon | TE2000-U | Equipped with 4x, 20x lenses and with a laser system. |
Laser | Research Instruments | 7-47-500 | Saturn 5 Active laser. |
Microdispenser | Drummond | 3-000-105 | The microdispenser is used to move the embryos. A p10 pipette can also be used but loading as minimal volume as possible. |
60mm culture dish | Corning | 430166 | Use the lid of the dish to make the injection plate since they have lower walls and will make positioning and moving of the micropipettes with the micromanipulator easier. |
35mm culture dish | Corning | 430165 | These dishes are used for culturing the embryos in 50μl drops covered with mineral oil. Alternatively, a 4 well dish can also be used. Regardless of the dish chosen to culture the embryos, they always have to be equilibrated in the incubator for at least 4 hours prior to transfering the embryos to them. |
Incubator | Sanyo | MCO-19AIC | Any incubator that can be set to 38.5°C 5% CO2 conditions can be used. |
Stereomicroscope | Nikon | SMZ800 | Used for visualizing the embryos in the culture drops and during washes. Any stereomicroscope with a 10x magnification can be used. |
Control Unit HT | Minitube | 12055/0400 | Heating system attached to the stereomicroscope. |
Heated Microscope Stage | Minitube | 12055/0003 | Heating system attached to the stereomicroscope. |
Dextran-Red | Thermo Scientific | D1828 | A sterile 10mg/ml solution is used to inject. |
Mineral Oil | sigma | M8410 | Keep the mineral oil at room temperature and protected from light using foil paper. |
KSOMaa Evolve Bovine | Zenit | ZEBV-100 | Supplemented with 4mg/ml BSA. KSOM plates for embryo culture should be equilibrated in an incubator for at least 4 hours before use. |
FBS | Gemini-Bio | 100-525 | Use a stem-cell qualified FBS. |
Zygotes | Zygotes are injected 17-20 hpf and can be in-vitro- or in-vivo-derived. | ||
NaCl | Sigma | S5886 | Final concentration: 107.7mM. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
KCl | Sigma | P5405 | Final concentration: 7.16mM. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
KH2PO4 | Sigma | P5655 | Final concentration: 1.19mM. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
MgCL2 6H2O | Sigma | M2393 | Final concentration: 0.49mM. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
Sodium DL-lactate | Sigma | L4263 | Final concentration: 5.3mM. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
CaCl2-2H2O | Sigma | C7902 | Final concentration: 1.71mM. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
D-(−)-Fructose | Sigma | F3510 | Final concentration: 0.5mM. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
HEPES | Sigma | H4034 | Final concentration: 21mM. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
MEM-NEAA | Sigma | M7145 | Final concentration: 1X. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
BME-EAA | Sigma | B6766 | Final concentration: 1X. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
NaHCO3 | Sigma | S5761 | Final concentration: 4mM. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
Sodium pyruvate | Sigma | P4562 | Final concentration: 0.33mM. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
Glutamax | Gibco | 35050 | Final concentration: 1mM. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
BSA | Sigma | A-3311 | Final concentration: 1mg/ml. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
Gentamicin | Sigma | G-1397 | Final concentration: 5μg/ml. Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
Water for embryo transfer | Sigma | W1503 | Component of SOF-HEPES medium. |
SOF-HEPES medium | Made in the lab | pH 7.3-7.4, 280±10 mOs. Filter sterilized through a 22μm filter can be stored in the fridge at 4° C for 1 month. Warm in 37 °C water bath before use. |