Dataset Information

Identification of a rat model for usher syndrome type 1B by N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea mutagenesis-driven forward genetics.

ABSTRACT: The rat is the most extensively studied model organism and is broadly used in biomedical research. Current rat disease models are selected from existing strains and their number is thereby limited by the degree of naturally occurring variation or spontaneous mutations. We have used ENU mutagenesis to increase genetic variation in laboratory rats and identified a recessive mutant, named tornado, showing aberrant circling behavior, hyperactivity, and stereotypic head shaking. More detailed analysis revealed profound deafness due to disorganization and degeneration of the organ of Corti that already manifests at the onset of hearing. We set up a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)-based mapping strategy to identify the affected gene, revealing strong linkage to the central region of chromosome 1. Candidate gene resequencing identified a point mutation that introduces a premature stopcodon in Myo7a. Mutations in human MYO7A result in Usher syndrome type 1B, a severe autosomal inherited recessive disease that involves deafness and vestibular dysfunction. Here, we present the first characterized rat model for this disease. In addition, we demonstrate proof of principle for the generation and cloning of human disease models in rat using ENU mutagenesis, providing good perspectives for systematic phenotypic screens in the rat.

SUBMITTER: Smits BM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1449770 | biostudies-literature | 2005 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Identification of a rat model for usher syndrome type 1B by N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea mutagenesis-driven forward genetics.

Smits Bart M G BM Peters Theo A TA Mul Joram D JD Croes Huib J HJ Fransen Jack A M JA Beynon Andy J AJ Guryev Victor V Plasterk Ronald H A RH Cuppen Edwin E

Genetics 20050618 4

The rat is the most extensively studied model organism and is broadly used in biomedical research. Current rat disease models are selected from existing strains and their number is thereby limited by the degree of naturally occurring variation or spontaneous mutations. We have used ENU mutagenesis to increase genetic variation in laboratory rats and identified a recessive mutant, named tornado, showing aberrant circling behavior, hyperactivity, and stereotypic head shaking. More detailed analysi ...[more]

PMID: 15965244

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Project description:BACKGROUND: N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea mutagenesis was used to induce a point mutation in C57BL/6?J mice. Pain-related phenotype screening was performed in 915?G3 mice. We report the detection of a heritable recessive mutant in meiotic recombinant N1F1 mice that caused an abnormal pain sensitivity phenotype with spontaneous skin inflammation in the paws and ears. METHODS: We investigated abnormal sensory processing, neuronal peptides, and behavioral responses after the induction of autoinflammatory disease. Single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers and polymerase chain reaction product sequencing were used to identify the mutation site. RESULTS: All affected mice developed paw inflammation at 4-8 weeks. Histological examinations revealed hyperplasia of the epidermis in the inflamed paws and increased macrophage expression in the spleen and paw tissues. Mechanical and thermal nociceptive response thresholds were reduced in the affected mice. Locomotor activity was decreased in affected mice with inflamed hindpaws, and this reduction was attributable to the avoidance of contact of the affected paw with the floor. Motor strength and daily activity in the home cage in the affected mice did not show any significant changes. Although Fos immunoreactivity was normal in the dorsal horn of affected mice, calcitonin gene-related peptide immunoreactivity significantly increased in the deep layer of the dorsal horn. The number of microglia increased in the spinal cord, hippocampus, and cerebral cortex in affected mice, and the proliferation of microglia was maintained for a couple of months. Two hundred eighty-five SNP markers were used to reveal the affected gene locus, which was found on the distal part of chromosome 18. A point mutation was detected at A to G in exon 8 of the pstpip2 gene, resulting in a conserved tyrosine residue at amino acid 180 replaced by cysteine (Y180 C). CONCLUSIONS: The data provide definitive evidence that a mutation in pstpip2 causes autoinflammatory disease in an N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea mutagenesis mouse model. Thus, our pstpip2 mutant mice provide a new model for investigating the potential mechanisms of inflammatory pain.

Project description:PURPOSE: To characterize an N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea-induced dominant mouse mutant, M-1156, that exhibits progressive retinal degeneration and to investigate the pathogenesis of the retinal phenotype in the mutant. METHODS: A positional candidate gene approach was used to identify the causative gene in the M-1156 mutant. Funduscopic examination, light microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and electroretinography were performed to analyze the M-1156 phenotype. Real-time quantitative PCR, immunohistochemistry, and western blotting were also performed. RESULTS: Linkage analysis enabled the mutant gene to be mapped to a region of chromosome 19 containing Rom1, which encodes rod outer segment membrane protein 1. Sequence analysis demonstrated that the mutation consisted of a single base T-->C substitution at position 1,195 in Rom1 (M96760, National Center for Biotechnology Information [NCBI]) and that the mutant allele was expressed. A putative missense mutation designated Rom1(Rgsc1156) that was identified in the M-1156 mutant mouse causes a Trp to Arg substitution at position 182 in the translated protein. Rom1(Rgsc1156) heterozygotes were found to have a mottled retina and narrowed arteries in the fundus oculi. Photomicrographs of the retina revealed significant differences among the genotypes in the thickness of the outer nuclear layer and in the length of the outer segments of the photoreceptors. The alterations were more marked in the homozygotes than in the heterozygotes. Electron micrographs showed that the diameters of the discs varied in the heterozygotes and that the discs were more compactly stacked than in the wild type. There were significant differences among the genotypes in the amplitude of the a-wave in single-flash electroretinograms, but there were no significant differences among the photopic electroretinograms. Real-time quantitative PCR showed that there were no significant differences among the genotypes in Rom1 or peripherin/rds (Prph2) mRNA levels relative to the rhodopsin (Rho) mRNA level. Rom1 and Prph2 immunoreactivity were decreased in the retinas of the Rom1(Rgsc1156) mutants. Semiquantitative western blot analysis of retinas from 3-week-old Rom1(Rgsc1156) mutants demonstrated significant decreases in Rom1, Prph2, and Rho protein levels in all of the genotypes. CONCLUSIONS: The Trp182Arg substitution in Rom1(Rgsc1156) mutants causes retinal degeneration. The results suggested that Trp182Arg mutant Rom1 causes a decrease in the levels of wild-type Prph2 and Rom1, which in turn cause a reduction in the level of Prph2 containing tetramers in the disc rim region and ultimately result in unstable, disorganized outer segments and photoreceptor degeneration.

Project description:Targeted genomic enrichment followed by next-generation sequencing dramatically increased the efficiency of mutation discovery in human genomes. Here we demonstrate that these techniques also revolutionize traditional genetic approaches in model systems. We developed a two-step protocol utilizing a traditional bulk-segregant analysis (BSA) approach for positional cloning mutants in phenotype-driven forward genetic screens. First, BSA pools are 'light' sequenced for rough mapping, followed by targeted enrichment and deep-sequencing of the mutant BSA pool for the linked genomic region to fine-map and discover candidate mutations. We applied this method successfully to three Arabidopsis mutants and show that it can be scaled by multiplexing. Similarly, we applied these techniques to a gene-driven reverse genetics method (chemical driven target-selected mutagenesis or TILLING) that is used for generating gene knockouts in a wide range of organisms, including plants, invertebrates and vertebrates. We developed an efficient multiplexed genomic enrichment protocol for pre-barcoded samples. As a proof-of-principle, 770 genes were screened for induced mutations in 30 rats, which identified all but one known variants (30) as well as a large series of novel knockout and missense alleles. Mutations were retrieved at the expected frequency with a the false-positive rate of less than 1 in 6 million basepairs, which is much lower as compared to traditional mutation discovery approaches. Both methods are largely independent of the genome size due to the targeted enrichment and can thus be applied to any genetic model system of interest. Targeted genomic enrichment followed by next-generation sequencing dramatically increased the efficiency of mutation discovery in human genomes. Here we demonstrate that these techniques also revolutionize traditional genetic approaches in model systems. We developed a two-step protocol utilizing a traditional bulk-segregant analysis (BSA) approach for positional cloning mutants in phenotype-driven forward genetic screens. First, BSA pools are 'light' sequenced for rough mapping, followed by targeted enrichment and deep-sequencing of the mutant BSA pool for the linked genomic region to fine-map and discover candidate mutations. We applied this method successfully to three Arabidopsis mutants and show that it can be scaled by multiplexing. Similarly, we applied these techniques to a gene-driven reverse genetics method (chemical driven target-selected mutagenesis or TILLING) that is used for generating gene knockouts in a wide range of organisms, including plants, invertebrates and vertebrates. We developed an efficient multiplexed genomic enrichment protocol for pre-barcoded samples. As a proof-of-principle, 770 genes were screened for induced mutations in 30 rats, which identified all but one known variants (30) as well as a large series of novel knockout and missense alleles. Mutations were retrieved at the expected frequency with a the false-positive rate of less than 1 in 6 million basepairs, which is much lower as compared to traditional mutation discovery approaches. Both methods are largely independent of the genome size due to the targeted enrichment and can thus be applied to any genetic model system of interest.

Dataset Information

Identification of a rat model for usher syndrome type 1B by N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea mutagenesis-driven forward genetics.

Publications

Identification of a rat model for usher syndrome type 1B by N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea mutagenesis-driven forward genetics.

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