It remains a major challenge to develop conditional gene-knockout or effective gene-knockdown in adult zebrafish organs. Here we report a protocol for performing nanoparticle-mediated siRNA gene-silencing in adult zebrafish heart, thus providing a new loss-of-function method for studying adult organs in zebrafish and other model organisms.
Mammals have a very limited capacity to regenerate the heart after myocardial infarction. On the other hand, the adult zebrafish regenerates its heart after apex resection or cryoinjury, making it an important model organism for heart regeneration study. However, the lack of loss-of-function methods for adult organs has restricted insights into the mechanisms underlying heart regeneration. RNA interference via different delivery systems is a powerful tool for silencing genes in mammalian cells and model organisms. We have previously reported that siRNA-encapsulated nanoparticles successfully enter cells and result in a remarkable gene-specific knockdown in the regenerating adult zebrafish heart. Here, we present a simple, rapid, and efficient protocol for the dendrimer-mediated siRNA delivery and gene-silencing in the regenerating adult zebrafish heart. This method provides an alternative approach for determining gene functions in adult organs in zebrafish and can be extended to other model organisms as well.
Myocardial infarction has become a major health threat, leading to a tremendous economic burden around the world1. The adult mammalian heart fails to regenerate and replenish the lost cardiomyocytes on a macroscopic scale after the injury, leading to the formation of scar tissues and subsequent heart failure. Unlike mammals, the zebrafish is capable of heart regeneration, primarily through the robust myocardial proliferation after different types of heart injury, making it an ideal model organism for investigating the molecular mechanisms of heart regeneration2,3,4,5,6,7,8. Deciphering the endogenous mechanisms underlying zebrafish heart regeneration is an exciting area of research in the search for novel therapeutic strategies to improve human heart regeneration9.
Genetic manipulation methods are available in zebrafish. These consist of morpholinos (MO) that are also widely used in frogs, chick, and mammals besides in zebrafish10,11,12,13. MO has efficient knockdown of target gene expression in the adult zebrafish fin, brain, and retina14,15,16,17,18,19. Locked-nucleic acid (LNA) is another artificial oligonucleotide used to knock down endogenous gene expression not only in zebrafish embryos but also in adult animal organs20,21,22,23,24. However, the lack of effective loss-of-function methods for adults' hearts remains an obstacle in studying the molecular mechanisms of organ regeneration. At present, small-molecule inhibitors or transgenic expression of dominant-negative mutants are primarily used to block the function of a certain gene or pathway to study its function in the adult zebrafish heart regeneration25,26,27. However, not all genes or signaling pathways are applicable for these methods.
Small-interfering RNAs (siRNAs) are widely used for the loss-of-function analysis in mammalian cells and embryos of model organisms, as well as adult organs for preclinical studies in animal models28,29,30,31,32. siRNAs have been effectively used to silence genes in tumors33,34,35 and in cardiomyocytes36,37,38,39,40 via different delivery systems. Recently, we developed efficient siRNA-encapsulated nanoparticle gene-silencing in the regenerating adult heart using several different nanoparticles41,42,43, providing a novel tool for functional studies of genes in adult zebrafish organs. Based on our previous studies41,42,43, here we present a simple, practical, yet powerful protocol for siRNA gene-silencing in the regenerating adult zebrafish heart using f-PAMAM-PEG-R9 dendrimers. Aldh1a2 (aldehyde dehydrogenase 1 family, member A2) gene was upregulated after zebrafish apex resection and ablation of Aldh1a2 blocked the cardiac regeneration44. Here we take aldh1a2 gene as an example to test the gene knockdown efficiency mediated by nanoparticle-encapsulated siRNA injection. This protocol contains a procedure for zebrafish heart resection, chemical synthesis of nanoparticles, and a delivery method on siRNA-encapsulated nanoparticles into adult zebrafish heart.
All animal procedures used a zebrafish protocol approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee at Peking University, which is fully accredited by Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care.
1. Preparation of Tricaine Solution
2. Adult Zebrafish Ventricular Resection
3. Preparation of siRNA-encapsulated Nanoparticles
4. Injection of siRNA-encapsulated Nanoparticles into Adult Zebrafish Heart
5. Heart Collection, Fixation, and Evaluation of the Efficiency of siRNA Delivery
6. Evaluation of Nanoparticle-mediated siRNA Gene-silencing
To determine the efficiency of the dendrimer-mediated siRNA delivery, we resected the apex of the ventricle of the zebrafish heart, then injected about 10 µL of dendrimer only (mock group), Cy5-siRNA only (naked group), or f-PAMAM-PEG-R9 dendrimer-encapsulated Cy5-siRNA (Cy5-siRNA group) intrapleurally, respectively (Figure 2A-B). The fluorescence signal was detectable in the hearts injected with dendrimer-encapsulated Cy5-siRNA at 3, 24, and 48 hpi (hours post-injection), while it was hardly detectable in hearts from the mock and naked groups at 48 hpi (Figure 2C-D), suggesting that the f-PAMAM-PEG-R9 dendrimer effectively facilitates the delivery of siRNAs into the adult zebrafish heart and is stable for at least two days.
To investigate the effect of dendrimer-encapsulated siRNA on gene silencing, we chose aldh1a2 (retinoic acid-synthesizing enzyme) as a target gene, which has been reported to be required for heart regeneration after ventricular resection44. As shown in Figure 3A, the fish were allowed to recover for one day after ventricular resection and then microinjected with dendrimer-encapsulated siRNA. We found that the aldh1a2 mRNA expression level decreased in the hearts treated with f-PAMAM-PEG-R9 dendrimer-encapsulated siAldh1a2 compared with that of dendrimer-encapsulated scrambled siRNA (siNC) at 2 dpa (Figure 3B), demonstrating that f-PAMAM-PEG-R9 dendrimer-mediated siRNAs achieve gene-specific silencing in adult zebrafish heart.
Figure 1: Heart surgery and thoracic injection instruments. Photograph of the instruments used for ventricular resection in the adult zebrafish heart: sponge with a groove, elbow tweezers, sharp forceps, iridectomy scissors, long tweezers, and the insulin syringe used for dendrimer-encapsulated siRNA delivery. Please click here to view a larger version of this figure.
Figure 2: Effective f-PAMAM-PEG-R9 dendrimer-assisted delivery of siRNA into the injured adult zebrafish heart. (A) Scheme for investigating the uptake efficiency of nanoparticle-encapsulated Cy5-siRNA in adult zebrafish heart after ventricular resection (dpa: days post-amputation; hpi: hours post-injection). (B) Synthesis of f-PAMAM-PEG-R9 dendrimer and preparation of dendrimer-encapsulated Cy5-siRNA. (C) Cy5 fluorescence imaging of hearts injected with dendrimers only (mock), Cy5-siRNA only without dendrimer encapsulation (naked), and dendrimer-encapsulated fluorescence labeled Cy5-siRNA (Cy5-siRNA) detected by the in vivo imaging system, showing that fluorescence signals were nearly undetectable in the mock and naked groups at 48 hpi, while strong signals retained in the dendrimer-encapsulated Cy5-siRNA groups from 3 to 48 hpi. The arbitrary scale of fluorescence signals shows from weak (blue) to strong (red). (D) Quantification of Cy5-siRNA fluorescence signals in hearts assessed by the in vivo imaging system as in panel C (*P <0.05, ***P <0.001; data are mean ± s.e.m.; one-way analysis of variance followed by Bonferroni's multiple comparison tests; n = 3-4 hearts). Please click here to view a larger version of this figure.
Figure 3: Efficient siRNA silencing of aldh1a2 in the injured adult zebrafish heart. (A) Scheme for investigating the gene-silencing effect of aldh1a2 siRNA. (B) qPCR reveals that aldh1a2 mRNA decreased in nanoparticle-encapsulated siAldh1a2 hearts compared with nanoparticle-encapsulated scrambled siRNA hearts (siNC). The aldh1a2 mRNA expression level was normalized by GAPDH (***P <0.001; data are mean ± s.e.m. with paired Student's t-test). Please click here to view a larger version of this figure.
Supplementary Figure 1: Images of thoracic cavity injection. (A) The thoracic cavity in adult fish at 1 day post amputation. (B) Injection of nanoparticle-encapsulated siRNA into the thoracic cavity. Scale bars: 1 mm. Please click here to view a larger version of this figure.
Supplementary Figure 2: Uptake efficiency of nanoparticle-encapsulated Cy5-siRNA in uninjured adult zebrafish heart. (A) Cy5 fluorescence imaging of hearts injected with dendrimers only (mock), naked Cy5-siRNA without dendrimer encapsulation (naked), and dendrimer-encapsulated Cy5-siRNA under the in vivo imaging system. The arbitrary scale of fluorescence signals is from weak (blue) to strong (red). (B) Quantification of Cy5-siRNA fluorescence signals in hearts measured by the in vivo imaging system as in panel A (NC: no significant different; data are mean ± s.e.m.; one-way analysis of variance followed by the Bonferroni's multiple comparison test; n = 3-4 hearts). Please click here to view a larger version of this figure.
The zebrafish is fully capable of regenerating a variety of organs including the adult heart5. While transgenic and genetic methods are well-developed for studying gene functions in the embryos of zebrafish, investigators are still faced with the daunting task of generating conditional mutant alleles in zebrafish45,46. Thus, transgenic dominant-negative mutants or small-molecule inhibitors are frequently used to address gene functions in adult zebrafish organs25,27,42. Over the past a few years, we have developed an alternative method for the loss-of-function analysis of genes in the adult zebrafish heart using nanoparticle-mediated siRNA delivery and gene silencing41,42,43. Here, a detailed protocol for this method using dendrimer-mediated siRNA gene silencing in zebrafish hearts in particular and possibly in other zebrafish organs, in general, is presented.
The siRNA molecule cannot enter into the cells by itself due to its negative charge and would be easily degraded by the nuclease. With mono-disperse molecules, tunable structures and properties, dendrimers have been considered as promising siRNA carriers 47. The PAMAM dendrimers have rich cationic peripheries and buffering amines inside which could mediate siRNA encapsulation in physiological conditions and induce a "proton sponge" effect to release siRNA from endosomes in the cytoplasm respectively48,49,50. In this article, the PAMAM was modified to enhance the stability and delivery efficiency. The f-PAMAM-PEG-R9 system provides a hemispherical PAMAM dendrimer head with the positive charge for siRNA encapsulation to prevent the degradation by the nuclease. The PEG arm and the R9 transmembrane peptide was used to improve the hydrophilicity of the nanoparticles for stabilization and promote the uptake by cells respectively.
The quality and type of nanoparticles are critical for effective siRNA delivery and gene-silencing in the zebrafish heart. We have successfully investigated three structurally-diverse nanoparticles for this purpose: PEG-PLA, f-PAMAM-PEG-R9, and PEI-HYD-RGD nanoparticles41,42,43. Although they are not commercially produced, a regular organic chemistry lab can easily synthesize and purify nanoparticles as described previously35,37,43. Here, we chose the f-PAMAM-PEG-R9 dendrimer as an example to show the simple, efficient, dendrimer-mediated siRNA delivery and gene-silencing in the adult zebrafish heart after ventricular resection, because it is relatively easy to prepare siRNA-loaded dendrimer-complexes, such as by incubating the mixture at room temperature for ~20 min. On the other hand, the pH has to be adjusted for siRNA-loaded nanocomplexes if PEI-HYD-RGD is used43. Similarly, emulsifying and purification procedures are essential to obtain uniform nanoparticle-encapsulated siRNA solution if PEG-PLA nanoparticles are used35,41.
Another critical step is to minimize or have no bleeding during the injection of dendrimer-encapsulated siRNA as described in 4.5 since extensive bleeding interrupts heart regeneration and other biological systems. Thus, we suggest excluding fish from experimental groups if bleeding occurs during injection. In general, this simple injection procedure is easily mastered after a few trials.
The major limitations of this method are in the siRNA technology itself, such as potential off-target effects and incomplete deletion of genes of interest. Otherwise, highly reproducible biological replication of gene-silencing of several genes has been demonstrated in our work and that of others41. Importantly, this protocol is rapid, simple, and efficient, and the injection treatment is well-tolerated by adult zebrafish. Experimental analysis of siRNA gene-silencing efficiency may include the assessment of mRNA expression levels by in situ hybridization or quantitative RT-PCR, or of protein expression levels using Western blots, immunohistochemical staining, or other functional analyses. Together, we fully endorse nanoparticle-facilitated siRNA delivery as an alternative tool for loss-of-function studies in the adult zebrafish heart in particular and this approach may also be extended to other organs in adult zebrafish and other model organisms.
The authors have nothing to disclose.
The authors thank Dr. IC Bruce for critical comments and reading the manuscript. This work was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31430059, 31701272, 31730061, 81470399, and 31521062), AstraZeneca Asia, and Emerging Market Innovative Medicine and Early Development.
tricaine | Sigma | E10521 | Store at 4°C |
stereomicroscope | Leica | S8AP0 | |
sharp forcep | WPI | 14098 | |
iridectomy scissors | WPI | 501778 | |
elbow tweezers | Suzhou Liuliu | SE05Cr | |
α,ω-dipyridyl disulfido polyethylene glycol(Py-PEG-Py) | Biomatrik (Jiaxing) Inc. | 5239 | |
core of G4.0 polyamidoamine (PAMAM) | Andrews ChemServices | AuCS-297 | |
vacuum drying equipment | Yiheng | DZF-6020 | |
Dulbecco's phosphate-buffered saline (DPBS) | Gibco | 14190144 | |
tris(2-carboxyethyl)phosphine(TCEP) | Alfar Aesar | 51805-45-9 | Causes severe skin burns and eye damage. Causes serious eye damage. |
ultrafiltration tube | Millipore | UFC900308 | |
freeze dryer | Martin Christ | Alpha 2-4 Ldplus | |
NMR spectrometer | Bruker | AV400 | |
Deuterium oxide(D2O) | J&K | 174611 | |
NMR sample tube | J&K | WG-1000-7-50 | |
3 kDa MWCO ultrafiltration tube | Merck | UFC900308 | |
sea salts | Instant Ocean® | SS15-10 |