Abstract
We describe a technique suitable for routine three-dimensional (3-D) analysis of mouse embryos that is based on episcopic fluorescence images captured during serial sectioning of wax-embedded specimens. We have used this procedure to describe the cardiac phenotype and associated blood vessels of trisomic 16 (Ts16) and Cited2-null mutant mice, as well as the expression pattern of an Myf5 enhancer/β-galactosidase transgene. The consistency of the images and their precise alignment are ideally suited for 3-D analysis using video animations, virtual resectioning or commercial 3-D reconstruction software packages. Episcopic fluorescence image capturing (EFIC) provides a simple and powerful tool for analyzing embryo and organ morphology in normal and transgenic embryos.
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Acknowledgements
We are grateful to D. Summerbell, J.P. Martinez-Barbera and N. Brown for providing transgenic embryos; S. Pagakis for assistance with computing; and R. Chillingworth and J. Sawkins for technical assistance.
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Weninger, W., Mohun, T. Phenotyping transgenic embryos: a rapid 3-D screening method based on episcopic fluorescence image capturing. Nat Genet 30, 59–65 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/ng785
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ng785
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