Phenotypes of CF rabbits generated by CRISPR/Cas9-mediated disruption of the CFTR gene
Jie Xu, Alessandra Livraghi-Butrico, Xia Hou, Carthic Rajagopalan, Jifeng Zhang, Jun Song, Hong Jiang, Hong-Guang Wei, Hui Wang, Mohamad Bouhamdan, Jinxue Ruan, Dongshan Yang, Yining Qiu, Youming Xie, Ronald Barrett, Sharon McClellan, Hongmei Mou, Qingtian Wu, Xuequn Chen, Troy D. Rogers, Kristen J. Wilkinson, Rodney C. Gilmore, Charles R. Esther Jr., Khalequz Zaman, Xiubin Liang, Michael Sobolic, Linda Hazlett, Kezhong Zhang, Raymond A. Frizzell, Martina Gentzsch, Wanda K. O’Neal, Barbara R. Grubb, Y. Eugene Chen, Richard C. Boucher, Fei Sun
Jie Xu, Alessandra Livraghi-Butrico, Xia Hou, Carthic Rajagopalan, Jifeng Zhang, Jun Song, Hong Jiang, Hong-Guang Wei, Hui Wang, Mohamad Bouhamdan, Jinxue Ruan, Dongshan Yang, Yining Qiu, Youming Xie, Ronald Barrett, Sharon McClellan, Hongmei Mou, Qingtian Wu, Xuequn Chen, Troy D. Rogers, Kristen J. Wilkinson, Rodney C. Gilmore, Charles R. Esther Jr., Khalequz Zaman, Xiubin Liang, Michael Sobolic, Linda Hazlett, Kezhong Zhang, Raymond A. Frizzell, Martina Gentzsch, Wanda K. O’Neal, Barbara R. Grubb, Y. Eugene Chen, Richard C. Boucher, Fei Sun
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Research Article Cell biology Pulmonology

Phenotypes of CF rabbits generated by CRISPR/Cas9-mediated disruption of the CFTR gene

Abstract

Existing animal models of cystic fibrosis (CF) have provided key insights into CF pathogenesis but have been limited by short lifespans, absence of key phenotypes, and/or high maintenance costs. Here, we report the CRISPR/Cas9-mediated generation of CF rabbits, a model with a relatively long lifespan and affordable maintenance and care costs. CF rabbits supplemented solely with oral osmotic laxative had a median survival of approximately 40 days and died of gastrointestinal disease, but therapeutic regimens directed toward restoring gastrointestinal transit extended median survival to approximately 80 days. Surrogate markers of exocrine pancreas disorders were found in CF rabbits with declining health. CFTR expression patterns in WT rabbit airways mimicked humans, with widespread distribution in nasal respiratory and olfactory epithelia, as well as proximal and distal lower airways. CF rabbits exhibited human CF–like abnormalities in the bioelectric properties of the nasal and tracheal epithelia. No spontaneous respiratory disease was detected in young CF rabbits. However, abnormal phenotypes were observed in surviving 1-year-old CF rabbits as compared with WT littermates, and these were especially evident in the nasal respiratory and olfactory epithelium. The CF rabbit model may serve as a useful tool for understanding gut and lung CF pathogenesis and for the practical development of CF therapeutics.

Authors

Jie Xu, Alessandra Livraghi-Butrico, Xia Hou, Carthic Rajagopalan, Jifeng Zhang, Jun Song, Hong Jiang, Hong-Guang Wei, Hui Wang, Mohamad Bouhamdan, Jinxue Ruan, Dongshan Yang, Yining Qiu, Youming Xie, Ronald Barrett, Sharon McClellan, Hongmei Mou, Qingtian Wu, Xuequn Chen, Troy D. Rogers, Kristen J. Wilkinson, Rodney C. Gilmore, Charles R. Esther Jr., Khalequz Zaman, Xiubin Liang, Michael Sobolic, Linda Hazlett, Kezhong Zhang, Raymond A. Frizzell, Martina Gentzsch, Wanda K. O’Neal, Barbara R. Grubb, Y. Eugene Chen, Richard C. Boucher, Fei Sun

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Figure 5

Functional deletion of CFTR in rabbit nose causes progressive remodeling of the olfactory and respiratory mucosa.

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Functional deletion of CFTR in rabbit nose causes progressive remodeling...
(A–H) Representative high-power histological micrographs of WT (A, C, D) and CF (B, and E–H) olfactory mucosa stained with (H&E) (A, B, C, E, G) or AB-PAS (D, F, H). Scale bar: 10 μm (A and B), 50 μm (C–H). Note the striking degeneration of the olfactory epithelium in CF (B), which is reduced in height by approximately half, as compared with WT rabbits (A). OE, olfactory epithelium. Only sustentacular cells appear to remain on the CF surface epithelium. Degeneration of the olfactory epithelium is accompanied by impaction (E and F) and atrophy (G and H) of the underlying Bowman glands. Micrographs representative of n = 5 CF and WT rabbits, all ≥ 1 year old. (I–P) Lower magnification of histological micrographs of WT (I, J, M, and N) and CF (K, L, O, and P) rabbit posterior nasal cavity stained with H&E (I, K, M, and O) or AB-PAS (J, L, N, and P). Scale bar: 2 mm (I–L) and 0.5mm (M–P). I–L illustrate the increased number of ectopic lymphocytic aggregates (asterisks) in CF as compared with WT rabbits. Nasal-associated lymphoid tissue (NALT, arrows) was visible in the ventral aspect and do not appear different in the 2 genotypes. M–P highlight the extent of pathological changes in the nasal cavity of CF rabbit ≥ 1 year old, including remodeling of submucosal glands underlying the olfactory epithelia (O and P, arrows) and lymphocytic inflammation in the airway epithelial submucosa (O, arrowheads).