Production of a mouse line with a conditional Crim1 mutant allele

Crim1 is a developmentally expressed, transmembrane protein essential for normal embryonic development. We generated mice engineered to contain a Crim1 conditional null allele by flanking exons three and four of Crim1 with unidirectional LoxP sites. After crossing Crim1+/FLOX mice with a CMV-Cre line, a Crim1+/Δflox colony was established after germline transmission of the deleted allele. We then analyzed genomic DNA, mRNA transcripts, and protein expression from Crim1Δflox/Δflox null mice to confirm the nature of the genomic lesion. Crim1Δflox/Δflox mice displayed phenotypes similar to those previously described for a Crim1 gene-trap mutant, Crim1KST264/KST264, including perinatal lethality, digit syndactyly, eye, and kidney abnormalities, with varying penetrance and severity. The production of a conditional mutant allele represents a valuable resource for the study of the tissue-specific roles for Crim1, and for understanding the pleimorphic phenotypes associated with Crim1 mutation.