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.
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.
Forward genetic approaches to identify genes of interest through their function or loss-of-function1,2 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 researchers3-5, 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 cloning6,7.
Our recent aim8 was to identify early lens-inductive factors, since it has been demonstrated that initial steps in the vertebrate lens-inductive process occur as early as gastrula stages. To that end, we used the transiently lens-competent9 animal cap ectoderm (stage 11-11.510) of Xenopus embryos as responding tissue for induction, and the stage VI Xenopus oocyte as a source of production for the inducing factors.
The following protocol builds on the expression cloning and sib selection protocols of Smith and Harland6,7, also successfully used by others11-13. In our oocyte expression system (first utilized for production of inducing factors by Lustig and Kirschner14), pools of injected transcripts capable of directly or indirectly causing the oocytes to produce factors that elicit a lens-inductive response in animal cap ectoderm are selected for and identified. Since the system is useful for expressing secreted inducing molecules directly (oocyte-injected INHBB mRNA causes mesoderm induction in mesoderm-competent animal cap ectoderm8), we originally expected the screening procedure to be useful chiefly for identification of paracrine factors. However, since we identified a nuclear factor in our screen (ldb18), it is clear that the system can be used to identify a wide variety of molecules such as transcriptional or translational regulatory factors, miRNAs, cofactors, or juxtacrine factors.
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<…
The authors have nothing to disclose.
This work was supported by a Professional Development Grant to C.Z.P. from the Shepherd University Foundation. The authors wish to thank Brett Zirkle and Malia Deshotel for helpful discussions on the protocols, and Dr. Carol Hurney for generous assistance.
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, 0.530mm |
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 | 150mm 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 |