Abstract
The event of homologous recombination provides a very powerful tool to introduce mutations into possibly every gene (1, 2). Once a gene is cloned, a mutation can be introduced, first, by standard recombinant DNA methodology and, subsequently, with the help of embryonic stem cells into the mouse germline. The challenge then remains to find out how the animals can cope with the genetic defect and to deduce the role of the gene in the intact organism from the results obtained. This technique now makes it feasible to deploy a genetic approach for the molecular analysis of mammalian development and physiology. An obvious disadvantage of homologous recombination, however, is the difficulty in targeting a specific tissue. For example, if one were to introduce a mutation into the β-actin gene, it seems likely that this mutation would affect the viability of the whole organism. Thus, such a mouse model might not be useful for studying the role of the actin cytoskeleton in Sertoli cells.
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Eisel, U., Reynolds, K., Riddick, M., Zimmer, A., Zimmer, A. (1994). Inhibition of Spermatogenesis by Tetanus Toxin Expression in Sertoli Cells of Transgenic Mice. In: Bartke, A. (eds) Function of Somatic Cells in the Testis. Serono Symposia, USA. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-2638-3_11
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-2638-3_11
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