A Knockin C3-reporter mouse model represents a valuable tool to monitor C3 levels, a biomarker of inflamed versus uninflamed tissues

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Kolev M, West EE, et al. Immunity. 2020 Mar 17. Diapedesis-Induced Integrin Signaling via LFA-1 Facilitates Tissue Immunity by Inducing Intrinsic Complement C3 Expression in Immune Cells.

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genOway has generated C3-reporter mice (C3^{IRES‑tdTomato} C57BL/6 mice) for a group of researchers, led by Claudia Kemper, who recently published their findings in Immunity.

C3 is a protein that plays a critical role in activating the complement system: several studies have indeed shown that increased C3 levels result in autoimmunity, while decreased C3 levels give rise to higher susceptibility to bacterial and viral infections. In this study, the authors demonstrated that these defects can be corrected by restoring intracellular C3 via adenovirus- or electroporation-mediated in vivo delivery.

The C3-reporter mice are therefore invaluable tools to monitor the intracellular expression of C3 in vivo, and distinguish inflamed versus uninflamed tissues.

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