TOTIPOTENT CELLS FOR NUCLEAR TRANSFER

摘要

Animal cells which are totipotent for nuclear transfer (TNT cells) can be isolated from the embryonic disc of the blastodermic vesicle of an ungulate, or the equivalent tissue of an embryo at an equivalent stage in non-ungulate species. TNT cells can be cultured in vitro, which allows cloning as desired and genetic manipulation, for example to introduce a transgene. Their nuclei can be transferred to suitable recipient cells and embryos reconstituted. In this way, animals of high genetic merit may be cloned and transgenic animals may be generated by mass transformation techniques across a broader range of species than is accessible with embryonic stem cell technology and without reliance on pronuclear microinjection.