Pantropic retroviruses as a transduction tool for sea urchin embryos

摘要: Sea urchins are an important model for experiments at the intersection of development and systems biology, technical innovations that enhance utility this great value. This study explores pantropic retroviruses as a transduction tool sea urchin embryos, demonstrates infect embryos with high efficiency genomically integrate copy number one per cell. We successfully used self-inactivation strategy to both insert urchin-specific enhancer disrupt endogenous viral enhancer. The resulting self-inactivating viruses drive global persistent gene expression, consistent genomic integration during first cell cycle. Together, these data provide substantial proof principle technology in embryos.