Visualizing X-Inactivation

We also seek to develop techniques to visualize RNA expression at the single cell, single allele, and single molecule resolution in intact embryos of all stages. Shown on the right is an embryonic day 6.5 (E6.5) mouse embryo, stained by RNA FISH to detect Xist/Tsix (in green; Xist RNA coats the inactive-X and Tsix RNA is detected as a pinpoint of expression from the active-X) and RNA from the X-linked gene Pgk1 (red) (this movie is one of a series in Supplemental movies in Maclary et al., 2014). The nuclei are stained blue with DAPI. We wish to optimize this procedure to allow visualization of nascent X-linked gene expression in intact embryos at the single cell, single gene, and single allele locus resolution in 3-dimensional space.