Piezo1 (piezo-type mechanosensitive ion channel component 1), expressed in endothelial cells of developing blood vessels in mice, is required for vascular development. It encodes a mechanosensitive non-selective cation channel that, when activated, plays an essential role in red blood cell (RBC) volume homeostasis.
Exons 20-23 of the mouse Piezo1 gene are flanked by loxP sites in this conditional targeted mutant strain. Cre recombinase-mediated excision of the floxed region results in a frameshift and produces a knock-out allele.
Crosses with Vav1-iCre mice (Stock No. 008610) delete PIEZO1 protein expression in the hematopoietic system. Lymphocytes from the compound mutant mice exhibit greater than 95% deletion of Piezo1 transcript.
