Functional Cloning Using a Xenopus Oocyte Expression System

Summary

We describe a Xenopus oocyte and animal cap system for the expression cloning of genes capable of inducing a response in competent ectoderm, and discuss techniques for the subsequent analysis of such genes. This system is useful in the functional identification of a wide range of gene products.

Abstract

Identification of genes responsible for embryonic induction poses a number of challenges; to name a few, secreted molecules of interest may be low in abundance, may not be secreted but tethered to the signaling cell(s), or may require the presence of binding partners or upstream regulatory molecules. Thus in a search for gene products capable of eliciting an early lens-inductive response in competent ectoderm, we utilized an expression cloning system that would allow identification of paracrine or juxtacrine factors as well as transcriptional or other regulatory proteins. Pools of mRNA were injected into Xenopus oocytes, and responding tissue placed directly on the oocytes and co-cultured. Following functional cloning of ldb1 from a neural plate stage cDNA library based on its ability to elicit the expression of the early lens placode marker foxe3 in lens-competent animal cap ectoderm, we characterized the mRNA expression pattern, and assayed developmental progression following overexpression or knockdown of ldb1. This system is suitable in a very wide variety of contexts where identification of an inducer or its upstream regulatory molecules is sought using a functional response in competent tissue.

Introduction

Forward genetic approaches to identify genes of interest through their function or loss-of-function^1,2 are an integral part of understanding complex patterning events in development. Coupled with powerful reverse genetic techniques available to an ever-widening array of systems and researchers^3-5, it is now possible to identify genes with a key functional role in a pathway and then elucidate that function at the cellular level and in interaction with other gene products. One approach to functionally identifying genes of interest that has yielded many key findings in the past is expression cloning^6,7.

Our r....

Protocol

All experimental procedures were approved by the University of Virginia Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee.

Note: Figure 1 shows a schematic overview of the experimental procedures.

1. Preparation of Oocytes

1. Pre-prime X. laevis females with 150 U of Pregnant Mare Serum Gonadotropin (PMSG) approximately one week in advance of oocyte isolation. Inject 1 ml 150 U/ml PMSG into dorsal lymph sac with 1 cc sterile syringe with 29 G needle.
2. Prepare solutions for oocyte injection and oocyte-animal cap assay.
   1. Prepare Ca⁺⁺/Mg

Results

In response to expression of mRNA injected into oocytes, responding animal cap tissue was assayed for expression of otx2 by in situ hybridization (Figure 2 and Table 1); otx2 is expressed in the presumptive lens ectoderm (PLE) from neural tube closure through lens placode thickening¹⁹. However, since otx2 is also expressed in the anterior neural ectoderm as well as non-neural head ectoderm outside the PLE, it is associated wi.......

Discussion

The method described here for the functional cloning of genes capable of inducing a response in competent ectoderm can be used to identify a wide range of gene products. This method expands upon past work by combining tissue-inducing assays with expression cloning techniques. We utilize the metabolic pathways of the Xenopus oocyte as a source of production of inducing factors, directly or indirectly, following RNA injection. This, in combination with the use of established methods for cloning a gene of interest<.......

Materials

List of materials used in this article

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
12/101 Antibody	Developmental Studies Hybridoma Bank	12/101	Monoclonal antibody for detection of muscle tissue
20x SSC Buffer	Sigma	S6639	for ISH
Acetic anhydride	Sigma	A6404	for ISH
Anti-Dig-AP	Roche	11093274910	for ISH
Aurum Plasmid Mini Kit	Bio-Rad	732-6400	Plasmid DNA purification
Blocking Reagent	Roche	11096176001	for ISH
BM Purple	Roche	11442074001	for ISH
Boekel Hybridization Oven	Fisher Scientific	13-245-121	for ISH
Bouin's Solution	Sigma	HT10132	for ISH
BSA	Sigma	A9647	for OCM
CHAPS	Sigma	C3023	for ISH
Collagenase A	Roche	10103578001	Defolliculation of oocytes
Cysteine	Sigma	C121800	Dejelly embryos
DEPC-H2O	Fisher Scientific	BP5611	for ISH
Dig-RNA Labeling Mix	Roche	11277073910	for ISH probes
Dumont #5 forceps	World Precision Instruments	500233	for Vitelline envelope removal
Ethyl 3-aminobenzoate	Sigma	A5040	MS222 anesthetic
Ficoll PM 400	Sigma	F4375	for Injection media
Formamide	Sigma	F9037	for ISH
Gentamicin sulfate	Sigma	G1914	for OCM
Glass capillaries	World Precision Instruments	4878	3.5" long, I,D, 0.530 mm
Glass sample vials	Fisher Scientific	06-408B	for ISH
Hair loop			Hair affixed in pasteur pipette for tissue manipulation
Heparin sodium salt	Sigma	H4784	for ISH
Injector Nanoliter 2010	World Precision Instruments	Nanoliter 2010	Microprocessor-controlled microinjector
Instant Ocean	Carolina	972433	Aquarium Salt for frog recovery
IRBG XGC Xenopus verified full-length cam cDNA	Source Bioscience	989_IRBG	cDNA library
LB Agar plates with 100 µg/ml Ampicillin	Teknova	L5004	150 mm pre-poured LB-Amp plates for sib selection
LB Luria Broth	Teknova	L8650	LB for collecting colonies in sib selection from plates and dilution of cultures
Magnetic mRNA Isolation Kit	New England BioLabs	S1550S	for isolation of poly(A)-enriched RNA
Maleic Acid	Sigma	M0375	for ISH
Manual Microfil Micromanipulator	World Precision Instruments	M3310R	Manual micromanipulator
Nutating Mixer	Fisher Scientific	22-363-152	Rocker for ISH
Permoplast	Nasco	SB33495M	Clay for injection and dissection dishes
Phosphate Buffered Saline	Sigma	P5368	for ISH
PMSG	Sigma	G4877	to stimulate oocyte development
Polyvinylpyrrolidone	Sigma	PVP40	for ISH
Programmable Puller	World Precision Instruments	PUL-1000	Micropipette needle puller
Proteinase K	Sigma	P6556	for ISH
pTnT Vector	Promega	L5610	cDNA library construction
Riboprobe Combination System	Promega	P1450	in vitro transcription
Superscript Full Length cDNA Library Construction Kit	Life Technologies	18248013	kit for cDNA library construction
Sutures, 3-0 silk	Fisher Scientific	19-037-516	Suture thread and needle for post-oocyte removal
Torula RNA	Sigma	R3629	for ISH
Triethanolamine	Sigma	T1502	for ISH
Tween 20	Sigma	P9416	for ISH
Universal RiboClone cDNA Synthesis System	Promega	C4360	alternative kit for cDNA library construction
Xenopus Full ORF Entry Clones - ORFeome Collaboration	Source Bioscience	5055_XenORFeome	ORFeome Clones
XL2-Blue Ultracompetent Cells	Agilent Technologies	200150	cells for transformation of cDNA library