ABSTRACT
Methods for modifying gene function at high spatiotemporal resolution in mice have revolutionized biomedical research, with Cre-loxP being the most widely used technology. However, the Cre-loxP technology has several drawbacks, including weak activity, leakiness, toxicity, and low reliability of existing Cre-reporters. This is mainly because different genes flanked by loxP sites (floxed) vary widely in their sensitivity to Cre-mediated recombination. Here, we report the generation, validation, and utility of iSuRe-HadCre, a new dual Cre-reporter and deleter mouse line that avoids these drawbacks. iSuRe-HadCre achieves this through a novel inducible dual-recombinase genetic cascade that ensures that cells expressing a fluorescent reporter had only transient Cre activity, that is nonetheless sufficient to effectively delete floxed genes. iSuRe-HadCre worked reliably in all cell types and for the 13 floxed genes tested. This new tool will enable the precise, efficient, and trustworthy analysis of gene function in entire mouse tissues or in single cells.
Subject(s)
Integrases , Animals , Integrases/genetics , Integrases/metabolism , Mice , Genes, Reporter , Recombination, GeneticABSTRACT
Low-flow vascular malformations are congenital overgrowths composed of abnormal blood vessels potentially causing pain, bleeding and obstruction of different organs. These diseases are caused by oncogenic mutations in the endothelium, which result in overactivation of the PI3K/AKT pathway. Lack of robust in vivo preclinical data has prevented the development and translation into clinical trials of specific molecular therapies for these diseases. Here, we demonstrate that the Pik3caH1047R activating mutation in endothelial cells triggers a transcriptome rewiring that leads to enhanced cell proliferation. We describe a new reproducible preclinical in vivo model of PI3K-driven vascular malformations using the postnatal mouse retina. We show that active angiogenesis is required for the pathogenesis of vascular malformations caused by activating Pik3ca mutations. Using this model, we demonstrate that the AKT inhibitor miransertib both prevents and induces the regression of PI3K-driven vascular malformations. We confirmed the efficacy of miransertib in isolated human endothelial cells with genotypes spanning most of human low-flow vascular malformations.
