Figure 1.

Sindbis viral vectors specifically target neurons in dissociated hippocampal cultures and acute slices. Dissociated hippocampal cultures (A–F) were transduced with Sin–GFP for 24 h. Only MAP2-positive cells (i.e., neurons) express GFP (C), whereas the glia-specific marker GFAP never labeled GFP-positive cells (F). The same specificity was seen in locally injected acute hippocampal slices (G–I) using the neuronal marker MAP2 (I) or by observing the very characteristic neuronal morphology of GFP-expressing cells (G, H). The arrowheads in G point to selected interneurons.