Tg(Dcx-cre/ERT2)DC-F18Zqx

A BAC clone (RP23-462G16) containing the Dcx locus as well as 30 kb upstream and 60 kb downstream was homologously recombined with a targeting vector to insert the cre/ERT2 open reading frame, a bovine growth hormone polyA tag and an Frt-flanked neo marker into exon 2 of Dcx which silenced the BAC copy of Dcx. Arabinose-induced flp expression in bacterial cells removed the neo cassette from the construct. The linearized, purified construct was microinjected into pronuclei of fertilized C57BL/6 eggs. Founders were crossed to cre-responsive Rosa26-lacz mice to identify animals with the neural expression of cre. Line DC-F18 showed tamoxifen-induced cre activity in the subgranular zone (SGZ) of the dentate gyrus, but not in the subventricular zone (SVZ), with non-specific labeling in some neurons of the piriform cortex, amygdala, and hypothalamus also observed. This line was analyzed in further detail in the SGZ. (J:187505)