Characterization of tetracycline-inducible bitransgenic Krt12rtTA/+/tet-O-LacZ mice.

Purpose: To prepare binary transgenic mouse lines that overexpress reporter genes in a corneal-epithelium-specific manner when induced by doxycycline.

Methods: A gene-targeting construct containing an internal ribosomal entry site-reverse tetracycline transcription activator (IRES-rtTA) cassette was inserted into the Krt12 allele (keratin 12 gene) to produce a knock-in Krt12(rtTA/+) mouse line through gene-targeting techniques. The Krt12(rtTA/+) knock-in mice were bred with tet-O-LacZ reporter mice to obtain Krt12(rtTA/+)/tet-O-LacZ bitransgenic mice.