Employing Reporter Cells in a Co-Culture to Study Retinoic Acid Production by Mouse Embryonic Cells

Source: Ababon, M. R., et al. Quantitative Measurement of Relative Retinoic Acid Levels in E8.5 Embryos and Neurosphere Cultures Using the F9 RARE-Lacz Cell-based Reporter Assay. J. Vis. Exp. (2016). This video demonstrates a technique for assessing retinoic acid activity in mouse embryos. Upon isolating cells from the mouse embryos, the cells are co-cultured with retinoic acid (RA) reporter cells. Embryonic cells produce RA, which induces beta-galactosidase expression in reporter cells, indicating RA activity in the embryonic cells.