Generation of a Cre recombinase knock-in mouse line labeling the mucous acinar cells of the sublingual gland
Objective To generate and identify the Itgbl1(integrin beta-like)promoter-driven Cre knock-in mouse line.Methods Itgbll-Cre knock-in mice were generated using clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats(CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein 9(Cas9)gene editing.The Itgbl1-Cre mice were crossed with the Cre reporter ROSALSL-tdTomato)mice to detect the expression profile of Cre activity.The tdTomato expression pattern across tissues and cell-specific markers were used to identify the cell types of Itgbl1-expressing cells and their progeny.Results and Conclusion tdTomato was specifically expressed in mucous acinar cells of the sublingual gland,pancreatic islet cells,and gastric endocrine cells.In addition,tdTomato expression was also found in some of the neurons of the retina and brain,as well as in a few cells in the serosal layer of the intestine,articular cartilage,periosteum,and bone marrow.The first Itgbl1-Cre recombinase transgenic mouse line was established,which can specifically label the mucous acinar cells of the sublingual gland.