Work

Subtype-selective Electroporation of Cortical Interneurons

Year: 2014

Type: article

Abstract: The study of central nervous system (CNS) maturation relies on genetic targeting of neuronal populations. However, the task of restricting the expression of genes of interest to specific neuronal subtypes has proven remarkably challenging due to the relative scarcity of specific promoter elements. GABAergic interneurons constitute a neuronal population with extensive genetic and morphological diversity. Indeed, more than 11 different subtypes of GABAergic interneurons have been characterized in the mouse cortex. Here we present an adapted protocol for selective targeting of GABAergic populations. We achieved subtype selective targeting of GABAergic interneurons by using the enhancer element of the homeobox transcription factors Dlx5 and Dlx6, homologues of the Drosophila distal-less (Dll) gene, to drive the expression of specific genes through in utero electroporation.

Source: Journal of Visualized Experiments

DOI: 10.3791/51518

Authors: Natalia V. De Marco Garcia, Gord Fishell

Institutions: Cornell University, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York University

Language: English

Topic: Neurogenesis and neuroplasticity mechanisms

Subfield: Developmental Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke