Off-Target Effects in Transgenic Mice: Characterization of Dopamine Transporter (DAT)-Cre Transgenic Mouse Lines Exposes Multiple Non-Dopaminergic Neuronal Clusters Available for Selective Targeting within Limbic Neurocircuitry.

ABSTRACT: Transgenic mouse lines are instrumental in our attempt to understand brain function. Promoters driving transgenic expression of the gene encoding Cre recombinase are crucial to ensure selectivity in Cre-mediated targeting of floxed alleles using the Cre-Lox system. For the study of dopamine (DA) neurons, promoter sequences driving expression of the Dopamine transporter (Dat) gene are often implemented and several DAT-Cre transgenic mouse lines have been found to faithfully direct Cre activity to DA neurons. While evaluating an established DAT-Cre mouse line, reporter gene expression was unexpectedly identified in cell somas within the amygdala. To indiscriminately explore Cre activity in DAT-Cre transgenic lines, systematic whole-brain analysis of two DAT-Cre mouse lin

SUBMITTER: Papathanou M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6873162 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Sep/Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature