Independent control of immunoglobulin switch recombination at individual switch regions evidenced through Cre-loxP-mediated gene targeting

Cell. 1993 Jun 18;73(6):1155-64. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(93)90644-6.

Abstract

We have employed a method based on the Cre-loxP recombination system of bacteriophage P1 to generate a mouse strain in which the JH segments and the intron enhancer in the IgH locus are deleted. By analysis of immunoglobulin isotype switch recombination in heterozygous mutant B cells activated by lipopolysaccharide plus interleukin-4, we show that, on the mutant chromosome, switch recombination at the mu gene switch region is strongly suppressed, whereas the switch region of the gamma 1 gene is efficiently rearranged. These data demonstrate an independent control of switch recombination at individual switch regions and suggest that, in the process of switch recombination, the alignment of the recombining strands occurs independently of and probably after the introduction of double-strand breaks into the switch regions involved.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Base Sequence
  • Female
  • Gene Rearrangement, B-Lymphocyte, Heavy Chain*
  • Genes, Immunoglobulin
  • Genes, Switch*
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice, Mutant Strains
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Recombination, Genetic
  • Tumor Cells, Cultured