Abstract
One of the challenges of the postgenomic era is characterizing the function and regulation of specific genes. For various reasons, the early chick embryo can easily be adopted as an in vivo assay of gene function and regulation. The embryos are robust, accessible, easily manipulated, and maintained in the laboratory. Genomic resources centered on vertebrate organisms increase daily. As a consequence of optimization of gene transfer protocols by electroporation, the chick embryo will probably become increasingly popular for reverse genetic analysis. The challenge of establishing chick embryonic electroporation might seem insurmountable to those who are unfamiliar with experimental embryological methods. To minimize the cost, time, and effort required to establish a chick electroporation assay method, we describe and illustrate in great detail the procedures involved in building a low-cost electroporation setup and the basic steps of electroporation.
Highlights
In the era of high-throughput genomic analysis, we are faced with a staggering number of gene sequences whose cellular functions have not been analyzed
It is clear that characterizing noncoding cis-regulatory sequences is essential for understanding species-specific differences and similarities in expression [1]. For both scientific and practical reasons, the chick embryo comes forward as a powerful model system that can be used for posttranscriptomic analysis of gene function and regulation
The chick embryo is historically one of the first experimental embryos used in developmental biology research
Summary
In the era of high-throughput genomic analysis, we are faced with a staggering number of gene sequences whose cellular functions have not been analyzed. Because the electrodes can be positioned at various sites on the embryo, the number of tissues that can be targeted by electroporation is higher than with viral infection or liposomal transfection. The process of electroporation itself is relatively simple and has been described previously [17,18,19], its setup is still daunting to those who are unfamiliar with the chick embryo or with the basic procedures used to construct electrical devices.
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