Characterization of Green Fluorescent Protein in Heart Valves of a Transgenic Swine Model for Partial Heart Transplant Research

Katherine Bishara; Jennie H Kwon; Morgan A Hill; Kristi L Helke; Russell A Norris; Kristin Whitworth; Randall S Prather; Taufiek Konrad Rajab

doi:10.3390/jcdd10060254

Characterization of Green Fluorescent Protein in Heart Valves of a Transgenic Swine Model for Partial Heart Transplant Research

J Cardiovasc Dev Dis. 2023 Jun 10;10(6):254. doi: 10.3390/jcdd10060254.

Authors

Katherine Bishara¹, Jennie H Kwon¹, Morgan A Hill¹, Kristi L Helke², Russell A Norris³, Kristin Whitworth⁴, Randall S Prather⁴, Taufiek Konrad Rajab¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Surgery, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29501, USA.
² Department of Comparative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29501, USA.
³ Department of Regenerative Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29501, USA.
⁴ National Swine Resource and Research Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.

Abstract

A transgenic strain of pigs was created to express green fluorescent protein (GFP) ubiquitously using a pCAGG promoter. Here, we characterize GFP expression in the semilunar valves and great arteries of GFP-transgenic (GFP-Tg) pigs. Immunofluorescence was performed to visualize and quantify GFP expression and colocalization with nuclear staining. GFP expression was confirmed in both the semilunar valves and great arteries of GFP-Tg pigs compared to wild-type tissues (aorta, p = 0.0002; pulmonary artery, p = 0.0005; aortic valve; and pulmonic valve, p < 0.0001). The quantification of GFP expression in cardiac tissue allows this strain of GFP-Tg pigs to be used for future research in partial heart transplantation.

Keywords: heart transplant; immunohistochemistry; swine model; transgenic.

Abstract

Grants and funding