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Updated: Jun 24, 2026
11:02
Chromatin Immunoprecipitation Assay for Tissue-specific Genes using Early-stage Mouse Embryos
Published on: April 29, 2011
Double bromodomain-containing gene Brd2 is essential for embryonic development in mouse
Enyuan Shang1, Xiangyuan Wang, Duancheng Wen
1Division of Statistical Genetics, Department of Biostatistics, Mailman School of Public Health and Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York 10032, USA.
Summary
Bromodomain-containing gene Brd2 is essential for embryonic development. Brd2(-/-) mice exhibit embryonic lethality by day 11.5, with neural tube defects and increased cell death, indicating Brd2
Area of Science:
- Genetics
- Developmental Biology
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- The BET (Bromodomain and Extra-Terminal) subfamily comprises genes with conserved bromodomains and an ET domain.
- Brd2 is the founding member of the BET subfamily, and its precise role in mammalian development was previously unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the essentiality of Brd2 in embryonic development.
- To characterize the developmental defects associated with Brd2 deficiency.
Main Methods:
- Generation of a Brd2-deficient mouse line.
- Phenotypic analysis of Brd2(-/-) embryos and embryonic fibroblast cells.
- Tetraploid complementation assay to assess extraembryonic tissue contribution.
Main Results:
- Homozygous Brd2 mutants (Brd2(-/-)) are embryonic lethal, with death occurring around embryonic day 11.5.
- Brd2(-/-) embryos display smaller size, neural tube abnormalities, and increased apoptosis.
- Brd2-deficient cells show reduced proliferation, and placental insufficiency is not the cause of lethality.
Conclusions:
- Brd2 is an essential gene for mouse embryonic development.
- Brd2 plays a critical role in neural tube development and cell survival.
- The lethality of Brd2 deficiency is intrinsic to the embryo, not due to extraembryonic tissues.
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