A novel fluorescence reporter system for the characterization of dairy goat mammary epithelial cells

Goat mammary epithelial cells (GMECs) are a useful model to understand the physiological function of mammary glands and to assess the efficiency of mammary-specific vectors. The aim of this study was to develop an effective and convenient way to evaluate the secretory capacity of GMECs in primary culture. In this study, we developed a reporter system using fluorescent proteins driven by the CSN2 (Capra hircus beta-casein) gene promoter to detect the secretory capacity of GMECs. Additionally, we evaluated the efficiency of the reporter system by determining the expression of cytoskeletal proteins and beta-casein protein. The results suggest that this reporter system provides an easy, convenient and effective method to detect the function of milk synthesis in GMECs. Primary cultures of GMECs were homogeneous and retained the function of milk synthesis, prompting their usefulness as a model for further studies.