PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Göz Aytürk, Didem
AU  - You, Wenjia
AU  - Cepko, Constance L.
TI  - Mouse Lines with Cre-Mediated Recombination in Retinal Amacrine Cells
AID  - 10.1523/ENEURO.0255-21.2021
DP  - 2022 Jan 01
TA  - eneuro
PG  - ENEURO.0255-21.2021
VI  - 9
IP  - 1
4099  - http://www.eneuro.org/content/9/1/ENEURO.0255-21.2021.short
4100  - http://www.eneuro.org/content/9/1/ENEURO.0255-21.2021.full
SO  - eNeuro2022 Jan 01; 9
AB  - Amacrine cells (ACs) are the most diverse neuronal cell type in the vertebrate retina. Yet little is known about the contribution of ACs to visual processing and retinal disease. A major challenge in evaluating AC function is genetic accessibility. A classic tool of mouse genetics, Cre-mediated recombination, can provide such access. We have screened existing genetically-modified mouse strains and identified multiple candidates that express Cre-recombinase in subsets of retinal ACs. The Cre-expressing mice were crossed to fluorescent-reporter mice to assay Cre expression. In addition, a Cre-dependent fluorescent reporter plasmid was electroporated into the subretinal space of Cre strains. Herein, we report three mouse lines (Tac1::IRES-cre, Camk2a-cre, and Scx-cre) that express Cre recombinase in sub-populations of ACs. In two of these lines, recombination occurred in multiple AC types and a small number of other retinal cell types, while recombination in the Camk2a-cre line appears specific to a morphologically distinct AC. We anticipate that these characterized mouse lines will be valuable tools to the community of researchers who study retinal biology and disease.