A Novel CRISPR/Cas9-mediated Mouse Model of Colon Carcinogenesis

Abstract

Background & AimsHuman sporadic colorectal cancer (CRC) results from a multistep pathway with sequential acquisition of specific genetic mutations in the colorectal epithelium. Modeling CRC in vivo is critical for understanding the tumor microenvironment. To accurately recapitulate human CRC pathogenesis, mouse models must include these multi-step genetic abnormalities. Aims: Generate a sporadic CRC model that more closely mimics this multi-step process and use this model to study the role of a novel Let7 target PLAGL2 in CRC pathogenesis. MethodsWe generated a CRISPR/Cas9 somatic mutagenesis mouse model that is inducible and multiplexed for simultaneous inactivation of multiple genes involved in CRC pathogenesis. We used both a doxycycline-inducible transcriptional activator and a dox-inactivated transcriptional repressor to achieve tight, non-leaky expression of the Cas9 nickase. This mouse has transgenic expression of multiple guide RNAs to induce sporadic inactivation in the gut epithelium of four tumor suppressor genes commonly mutated in CRC, Apc, Pten, Smad4 and Trp53. These were crossed to Vil-LCL-PLAGL2 mice which have Cre-inducible overexpression of PLAGL2 in the gut epithelium. ResultsThese mice exhibited random somatic mutations in all four targeted tumor suppressor genes, resulting in multiple adenomas and adenocarcinomas in the small bowel and colon. Crosses with Vil-LCL-PLAGL2 mice demonstrated that gut-specific PLAGL2 overexpression increased colon tumor growth. ConclusionsThis conditional model represents a new CRISPR/Cas9-mediated mouse model of colorectal carcinogenesis. These mice can be used to investigate the role of novel, previously uncharacterized genes in CRC, in the context of multiple commonly mutated tumor suppressor genes and thus more closely mimic human CRC pathogenesis.