A general method for gene knockdown in mice by using lentiviral vectors expressing small interfering RNA

G Tiscornia, O Singer, M Ikawa… - Proceedings of the …, 2003 - National Acad Sciences
G Tiscornia, O Singer, M Ikawa, IM Verma
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2003National Acad Sciences
We describe the use of lentiviral vectors expressing small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) to
knock down the expression of specific genes in vitro and in vivo. A lentiviral vector capable
of generating siRNA specific for GFP after transduction of 293T-GFP cell lines showed no
GFP fluorescence. Furthermore, no GFP-specific RNA could be detected. When eggs from
GFP-positive transgenic mice were transduced with lentivirus-expressing siGFP virus,
reduced fluorescence could be seen in blastocysts. More interestingly, pups from F1 …
We describe the use of lentiviral vectors expressing small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) to knock down the expression of specific genes in vitro and in vivo. A lentiviral vector capable of generating siRNA specific for GFP after transduction of 293T-GFP cell lines showed no GFP fluorescence. Furthermore, no GFP-specific RNA could be detected. When eggs from GFP-positive transgenic mice were transduced with lentivirus-expressing siGFP virus, reduced fluorescence could be seen in blastocysts. More interestingly, pups from F1 progeny, which expressed siGFP, showed considerably diminished fluorescence and decreased GFP. We propose that an approach of combining transgenesis by lentiviral vectors expressing siRNAs can be used successfully to generate a large number of mice in which the expression of a specific gene(s) can be down-regulated substantially. We believe that this approach of generating “knockdown” mice will aid in functional genomics.
National Acad Sciences