Tg(Aire-cre)410-5Mmat

The BAC RP23-461E7 containing the Aire locus was modified to replace the Aire start codon with the open reading frame of cre recombinase followed by the rabbit beta-globin polyA signal, using the Red/ET Counter Selection BAC Modification kit. The linearized BAC construct was injected into pronuclei of fertilized C57BL/6 oocytes. Multiple founders were generated. When crossed to a reporter mouse strain, lines410-4, 413-3, 4155-2, and 461-1 displayed GFP expression in the entire thymus region, as well as in all tissues examined (as result of embryonic expression in all three germ layers.) GFP expression was confined to particular thymic components or cells in two other lines (410-3 and 410-5). Line 410-5 was characterized in more detail, and two distinct patterns of expression were observed. (J:160217)