Abstract
The use of viral vectors for gene transfer to specific brain regions is a powerful tool for determining gene function in mouse behavioral models. We have employed a lentiviral vector to deliver small-hairpin RNAs to areas of mouse brain implicated in behaviors relevant to drug addiction, such as the nucleus accumbens and ventral tegmental area. Delivery of virus expressing small-hairpin RNAs results in sustained target gene knockdown by RNA interference. Mice can subsequently be tested for behavioral responses to various drugs of abuse over the course of several weeks or months. Here we describe a method for stereotaxic delivery of lentivirus to mouse brain. This method is widely applicable to any behavioral experiment in which the role of a specific gene in a particular brain region is to be elucidated.
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Abbreviations
- RNAi:
-
RNA interference
- shRNA:
-
small-hairpin RNA
- GFP:
-
green fluorescent protein
- DMA:
-
digital manipulator arm
- SAS:
-
stereotaxic alignment system
- AP:
-
anterior/posterior
- ML:
-
medial/lateral
- DV:
-
dorsal/ventral
- i.p.:
-
intraperitoneally
- s.c.:
-
subcutaneously
- VTA:
-
Ventral tegmental area
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Ulrike Heberlein for her support of this project, Heidi Lesscher for amygdala injection coordinates, Viktor Kharazia and Rajani Maiya for photographic assistance, and David Kapfhamer and Karen Berger for critical reading of the manuscript. This work was supported by funds awarded to Ulrike Heberlein by the State of California for medical research on alcohol and substance abuse through the University of California at San Francisco and the Alcohol Center for Translational Genetics at the Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center.
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Lasek, A.W., Azouaou, N. (2010). Virus-Delivered RNA Interference in Mouse Brain to Study Addiction-Related Behaviors. In: Proetzel, G., Wiles, M. (eds) Mouse Models for Drug Discovery. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 602. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-60761-058-8_17
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-60761-058-8_17
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