A new animal model in the study of UCB metabolism and neurotoxicity

Hyperbilirubinemia is the most common clinical situation during neonatal life and it is observed in 60% of full?term and 80% of pre?term infants. A combination of factors still not well defined such as: prematurity, infections, genetic disorders, brest-feed under-nourishing, may cause hazardous, toxic levels of UnConjugated Bilirubin (UCB) during neonatal period (neonatal jaundice) that pose a direct threat of brain bamage (kernicterus). The deposition of UCB in the Central Nervous System (CNS) causes Bilirubin Encephalopathy (BE) with lifelong motor, auditory and mental impairment. The in vivo knowledge on kernicterus derives almost totally from the investigation on Gunn rat that is a natural model for BE. In this animal model the genetic lesion are closely parallel those present in the Crigler-Najjar syndrome type I and the neuropathological lesions are also similar to those found in humans. The Gunn rat is a mutant strain of Wistar rats that lack the uridin di phospho glucoronosyl transferase (UDPGT) activity toward bilirubin. Although the Gunn rat the classical laboratory model for bilirubin encephalopathy its use for the study of molecular mechanisms involved and the determination of other genes modulating the disease is limited by the existence of different strains and by the impossibility to generate targeted mutations in rats, preventing the in vivo study of the role of other genes in BE (i.e. Mrp1). The aim of my PhD project was to generate a mouse model of hyperbilirubinemia due to a one base deletion in the UGT1a1 gene, identical to the one present in the Gunn rat. To reach this goal, we took advantage to the †œGene Targeting†� technique. This genetic technique uses the homologous recombination to modify an endogenous gene. First we constructed the targeting vector specific for the gene of interest. To target genes in mice, the targeting vector was inserted into mouse embryonic stem cells (ES) in culture. At the same time we set up two screening strategies to verify the presence of the targeted mutation in electroporated ES cells (Southern blot and Multiplex PCR). Two positive clones were identified (A9 and G7). Then the positive ES clones were amplified and injected into the blastocysts. Blastocysts were implanted in to a foster mother to obtain the so-called †œchimera.†� Chimeric mice have two different populations of genetically distinct type of cells originated from different mouse strains and can be selected by the fur colour. We obtained two chimeras, one deriving from A9 clone and one from G7. These chimeras were mated with wild type mice to check for germ line transmission. If the modified ES cells made up the reproductive organ, the offspring will inherit the mutated allele (heterozygous). At the present time we are screening the offspring of the chimeras, to check for germ line transmission. Mating the heterozygous mice, the offspring will have the entire body based on the previously mutated embryonic stem cell (homozygous). Obtaining this new animal model for bilirubin neurotoxicity (Gunn mouse) will be crucial to understand the mechanisms regulating the disease, together with an improvement of the diagnosis, prediction of the prognosis, and development of new therapeutic strategies.