Final Report Summary - SOMABIO (Easy and rapid generation of light-emitting somatic-transgenic mice to monitor specific disease states and to screen effective drugs)
Biomedical science relies on the use of biological models which mimic human disease processes as closely as possible. One of the best model systems is the laboratory rodent since many diseases are very similar in both rodents and humans at the most fundamental level. Despite the numerous advantages of using rodents, monitoring disease progression and the possible therapeutic benefit of medicines is both complex and expensive. Large numbers of animals are sacrificed and then analysed at significant expense.
In this project, we developed a library of molecular delivery vehicles, known as “vectors” to deliver DNA to specific cells and tissues in young rodents in a targeted way. This DNA encodes firefly luciferase, and contains regulatory elements which are activated or deactivated in different disease states. We have shown that we can deliver these vectors to a range of rodent tissues (liver, brain, lung, skin, paw) and they retain the luciferase DNA, stably, for many months. We can measure the emission of light from these animals using a highly sensitive camera. This technology allows us to monitor different molecular pathways in live mice, continually and non-invasively. This provides a real-time readout of progression of disease models, and the effectiveness of different drug treatments.
In this project, we developed a library of molecular delivery vehicles, known as “vectors” to deliver DNA to specific cells and tissues in young rodents in a targeted way. This DNA encodes firefly luciferase, and contains regulatory elements which are activated or deactivated in different disease states. We have shown that we can deliver these vectors to a range of rodent tissues (liver, brain, lung, skin, paw) and they retain the luciferase DNA, stably, for many months. We can measure the emission of light from these animals using a highly sensitive camera. This technology allows us to monitor different molecular pathways in live mice, continually and non-invasively. This provides a real-time readout of progression of disease models, and the effectiveness of different drug treatments.