Prdm1-iCre (Blimp1-iCre) Mouse

The PR/SET domain 1 (PRDM1 or BLIMP1) gene encodes a transcriptional repressor. It inhibits the expression of interferon-β (IFN-β) genes and plays a crucial role during mouse germ cell formation. Additionally, by suppressing the gene expression program in mature B cells, PRDM1 drives B cells to differentiate into antibody-secreting plasma cells. PRDM1 is widely expressed during development, including in migrating germ cells. Research has shown that mice with defective Prdm1 genes exhibit abnormal primordial germ cell (PGC)-like cells during early embryonic development, which fail to proliferate or migrate normally. Prdm1-Cre mice are useful for tissue-specific studies targeting PGCs ^[1].

The Prdm1-iCre (Blimp1-iCre) mouse is generated by integrating the P2A-iCre expression cassette into the stop codon of the mouse Prdm1 gene. Under the control of mouse Prdm1 gene regulatory elements, this strain expresses iCre recombinase (codon-optimized Cre recombinase). Using peptide 2A (P2A) avoids decreasing protein activity and downstream gene expression levels during multigene expression. When Prdm1-iCre (Blimp1-iCre) mice are crossed with mice containing loxP sites, Cre-mediated sequence recombination occurs in the offspring’s primordial germ cells.