Development of Mouse Model Systems of Germinal Center Lymphomas

Abstract

Germinal centers (GC) are the predominant origin of human B cell lymphomagenesis. Transgenic mice in which gene expression is altered specifically in GC B cells have broadened our knowledge about the mechanisms of malignant transformation. However, extensive resources are needed due to the genetic complexity of these mouse models. Thus, bone marrow (BM)-derived chimerism is an attractive approach to study GC B cell derived lymphomagenesis, as it allows for an efficient allocation of resources and reduces the number of animals used.

A novel allele for inducible Cre expression in germinal center B cells

“…To test whether Cγ1-CreERT2 is active in B cells carrying somatic mutations, we treated Cγ1-CreERT2; YFP flSTOP mice with TAM 10 days after immunization (Supporting Information Fig. 6A and B), sorted YFP-labeled splenocytes 2 days later, and sequenced the JH4 intron of the immunoglobulin heavy chain locus [10]. Indeed, YFP + cells carried somatic mutations, albeit at a lower frequency than control GC B cells (Supporting Information Fig.…”