Transmission of mutant phenotypes from ES cells to adult mice

Genetic manipulation of embryonic stem (ES) cells has been used to produce genetically engineered mice modeling human disorders. Here we describe a novel, additional application: selection for a phenotype of interest and subsequent transmission of that phenotype to a living mouse. We show, for the first time, that a cellular phenotype induced by ENU mutagenesis in ES cells can be transmitted and recapitulated in adult mice derived from these cells. We selected for paraquat-resistant (PQR) ES clones. Subsequent injection of these cells into blastocysts resulted in the production of germline chimeras, from which tail skin fibroblasts exhibited enhanced PQR. This trait was also recovered in progeny of the chimera. We avoided PQ toxicity, which blocks the ability to involve the germline, by developing a sib-selection method, one that could be widely applied wherever the selection itself might diminish the pluripotency of the ES cells. Thus, phenotype-driven screens in ES cells are both feasible and efficient in producing intact mouse models for in vivo studies.