title: Visualization of virus-infected brain regions using a GFP-illuminating flashlight enables accurate and rapid dissection for biochemical analysis.
abstract: Engineered viral vectors tagged with a fluorescent protein such as enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) have been widely used to study neuronal function after intracranial injection into specific brain regions. A rapid dissection of the virus-expressing region is required for certain biochemical analyses. To improve the accuracy of the rapid dissection, we developed a method that employs a Bluestar flashlight in combination with barrier filter glasses to visualize the expression of EGFP lentivirus that has been microinjected into the nucleus accumbens. Processing of dissected tissue for EGFP immunoblotting further validated the approach.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL, USA.
authors.forename: Xuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Marina E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Wolf
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000821:virology*; D001923:Brain Chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D005822:Genetic Vectors / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000032:analysis; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D016086:Lentivirus / Q000235:genetics; D008029:Lighting / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D008297:Male; D008845:Microinjections / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: C485184:enhanced green fluorescent protein; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins