Transcripts enriched in mouse olfactory sensory neurons

The overall aim of the experiment is to understand the phenotype of mature mouse olfactory sensory neurons by analyzing the transcripts expressed and enriched in them as compared to the rest of the cell types in the olfactory epithelium (consisting of immature neurons, supporting cells, progenitor cells and cells in lamina propria) and brain ( with out the olfactory bulbs). Comparision with the other cell types in the olfactory epithelium should eliminate the transcripts commonly expressed in the olfactory epithelium and comparision with brain will eliminate the transcripts common to most neurons. Our gene chip data indicates that mature mouse olfactory sensory neurons express 10,000 genes. Mature OSNs specifically contained three clusters of over represented Gene ontology categories: smell, ion transport and cilia. Analysis for the functionally over represented categories among the transcripts with a positive signal in the mature OSNs yielded largely broad categories common to all cells with the exception of chromatin modelling and RNA processing categories. Biological process categories of movement, development and immune response came as under represented categories. Keywords: cell type comparison To purify mature olfactory neurons we took advantage of the OMP-GFP mice. OMP(olfactory marker protein) is expressed specifically in mature olfactory and vomeronasal sensory neurons. In the OMP-GFP mice the coding region of OMP is replaced by GFP. We purified OSNs from the rest of the epithelium from these mice by using FACS. . We used the Affymetrix gene chips mouse expression set 430 (consisting of 430A and 430B chips). Our gene chip data is extensively validated by insitu hybridizations.