Toll-like receptor 4 (Tlr4) knockout rats produced by transcriptional activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN)-mediated gene inactivation.

ABSTRACT: Genetically engineered mice are a valuable resource for studies of the behavioral effects of ethanol. However, for some behavioral tests of ethanol action, the rat is a superior model organism. Production of genetically engineered rats has been severely hampered due to technical limitations. Here we utilized a promising new technique for efficient site-specific gene modification to create a novel gene knockout rat line. This approach is based on transcriptional activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs). TALENs function in pairs and bind DNA in a sequence-specific manner. Upon binding to the target sequence, a functional nuclease is reconstituted that creates double-stranded breaks in the DNA that are efficiently repaired by non-homologous end joining. This error-prone process often result

SUBMITTER: Ferguson C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3844088 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature