‘Glowing’ biosensor visualises cell division in chickens
The technology allows real-time visualisation of the cell cycle.
Researchers from the Roslin Institute have developed existing technology to visualise how cells grow and divide in chickens.
With their new system, known as Fucci (fluorescent ubiquitination cell cycle indicator), scientists have been using fluorescent proteins to make cells glow different colours throughout the different stages of the cell cycle.
The glowing proteins were introduced into chicken germ cells, with these then transplanted into surrogate host embryos. Once these had hatched, the males were used to generate embryos which carried the fluorescent cell cycle reporter system.
Within the embryo, scientists are then able to observe the glowing proteins as they accumulate and degrade through different stages of the cell cycle. Researchers can therefore visualise the cells and tissues throughout their development.
The glowing colours mean that researchers can monitor cell proliferation across developing tissues, analyse migrating cells, and undertake live imaging of embryos in the early stages of embryonic development.
This has also resulted in a new transgenic model known as ‘FuChi’ or ‘Fucci Chicken’. The resource can be used to study cell cycle changes in developing embryos, during organ growth, and in response to disease and infection.
Dr Zoe Sudderick, from the Roslin Institute, said: “This system is the first to enable real-time visualisation of the cell cycle in a bird species.
“It will improve understanding of embryonic development, disease and infection, supporting bird health and welfare, while also reducing the number of animals needed for research, compared with similar studies in rodents.”
The study has been published in the journal PLOS Biology.
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