Meeting Abstract
Lampreys represent an ancient lineage of jawless vertebrates, giving us a valuable perspective on the origins of vertebrate and gnathostome characteristics. However, developmental studies of gene functions in lamprey have been limited by a lack of reliable tools for genetic perturbations. The CRISPR/Cas system is a powerful tool for RNA-guided DNA mutagenesis, and is known to work in several model organisms. Here we present a proof-of-principle application of this tool in the sea lamprey Petromyzon marinus. By targeting the lamprey tyrosinase gene, we successfully reduced pigmentation of embryos, obtaining a high percentage of completely albinotic individuals – a phenotypical confirmation of a successful gene knock-out. We also present preliminary data and perspectives to further use this method in evo-devo studies of the vertebrate head.
