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A Method for Electroporation to Study Gene Function in Mammary Gland Development

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Abstract

To reveal the specific functions of various genes during embryonic development, the manipulation of genes using techniques such as electroporation is of fundamental importance for providing direct evidence concerning function or downstream activation of signaling networks. In vitro embryo culture and electroporation are useful techniques to introduce foreign genes, for developmental biology studies. Among the various mammalian culture techniques, Trowell culture is suitable for studies of embryonic mammary gland development because of its stability and ease of use in conjunction with electroporation technique application. The manipulation of gene expression using electroporation is a useful technique for the functional analysis of a particular gene. In this protocol, full steps for electroporation and in vitro embryo culture have been described for use in embryonic mammary gland development research.

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Abbreviations

MR:

Mammary rudiments

ICR:

Institute of Cancer Research

E:

Embryonic day

PBS:

Phosphate buffered saline

EGFP:

Enhanced Green Fluorescent Protein

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Acknowledgment

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MEST) (No. 2011-0015661). We are thankful to Dr. KW Cho for providing in situ data.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division in Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Department of Oral Biology, Brain Korea 21 project, Oral Science Research Institute, College of Dentistry, Yonsei Center of Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea

    Jong-Min Lee, Eun-Jung Kim & Han-Sung Jung

  2. Oral Biosciences, Faculty of Dentistry, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China

    Han-Sung Jung

  3. Division in Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Department of Oral Biology, Brain Korea 21 project, Oral Science Research Institute, College of Dentistry, Yonsei Center of Biotechnology, Yonsei University, 134 Shinchon-Dong, Seodaemoon-Gu, Seoul, 120-752, Korea

    Han-Sung Jung

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  1. Jong-Min Lee
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  2. Eun-Jung Kim
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  3. Han-Sung Jung
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Correspondence to Han-Sung Jung.

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Lee, JM., Kim, EJ. & Jung, HS. A Method for Electroporation to Study Gene Function in Mammary Gland Development. J Mammary Gland Biol Neoplasia 18, 233–237 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10911-013-9292-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10911-013-9292-6

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