Forward genetic analysis is one of the principal advantages of the zebrafish model system. However, managing zebrafish mutant lines derived from mutagenesis screens and mapping the corresponding mutations and integrating them into the larger collection of mutations remain arduous tasks. To simplify and focus these endeavors, we developed an approach that facilitates the rapid mapping of new zeb...

SM22 is a 201-amino acid actin-binding protein expressed at high levels in smooth muscle cells. It has structural homology to calponin, but how SM22 binds to actin remains unknown. We performed site-directed mutagenesis to generate a series of NH(2)-terminal histidine (His)-tagged mutants of human SM22 in Escherichia coli and used these to analyze the functional importance of potential actin bi...

Killer lectin-like receptor NKG2D, which is found on natural killer cells, recognizes MHC class 1-related ligands and also interacts with glycan ligands, heparin-conjugated bovine serum albumin (heparin-BSA) and sialyl Lewis X (sLeX) on multi-antennary N-glycans on transferrin secreted by HepG2 cells (HepTF). Using the glutathione-Stransferase-fused extracellular domain (AA 73-216) of NKG2D (rG...

The mouse continues to play a vital role in the deciphering of mammalian gene function and the modelling of human neurological disease. Advances in gene targeting technologies have facilitated the efficiency of generating new mouse mutants, although this valuable resource has rapidly expanded in recent years due to a number of major random mutagenesis programmes. The phenotype-driven mutagenesi...

The available techniques for directed gene manipulation in the mouse are unprecedented in any multicellular organism and make the mouse an invaluable tool for unraveling all aspects of mammalian biology. To realize fully the potential of these genetic tools requires that phenotypic analysis be efficient, rapid, and complete. Genetic chimeras and mosaics, in which mutant cells are mixed with wil...