Transgenic freshwater polyp

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GFP-labeled endodermal epithelial cells in a freshwater polyp.

Transgenic freshwater polyps are genetically modified freshwater polyps ( hydra ) that are used in basic research .

By microinjection of expression plasmids into embryos, foreign genes can be introduced into the cells of the polyp. The genetically marked cells, which now fluoresce green , for example (see GFP ), can be used to study in the completely transparent polyps where the cells migrate and how they differentiate. Furthermore, the modified cells can be made to “switch on” any genes at any point in time and anywhere in the hydra body . If the genes activated in this way are important, one expects considerable effects on the organism. From this, important conclusions can be drawn regarding the function of the genes concerned.

By studying the cells in this simply built animal, the scientists hope to gain insights into the mechanisms that regulate stem cell behavior and that have led to the development of complex cell systems in the course of evolution .

Hydra as a model system

Since Hydra has many of the genes that are homologous to those in the human genome and that function in the development and defense against pathogens , the transgenic cells in this model organism allow functional studies that were previously not possible in more complex organisms and in humans.

literature

  • Wittlieb, J. et al. (2006): Transgenic Hydra allow in vivo tracking of individual stem cells during morphogenesis. In: Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 103 (16): 6208-6211.
  • Khalturin, K. et al. (2007): Transgenic stem cells in Hydra reveal an early evolutionary origin for key elements controlling self-renewal and differentiation. In: Dev. Biol. 309 (1): 32-44.
  • Siebert, S. et al. (2008): Cell type complexity in the basal metazoan Hydra is maintained by both stem cell based mechanisms and transdifferentiation. In: Dev. Biol. 313: 13-24.
  • Milde, S. et al. (2009): Characterization of taxonomically-restricted genes in a phylum-restricted cell type. In: Genome Biol. 10 (1): R8.

Web links