Novel genetic techniques

Pucci, M.J. 2007. Novel genetic techniques and approaches in the microbial genomics era identification and/or validation of targets for the discovery of new antibacterial agents. Drugs R D 8, 201-212. 

Investigative efforts are underway to further improve the results of multimodality therapy of colorectal carcinoma. In addition to previously discussed phase III trials, other studies are incorporating novel chemotherapeutic agents to improve systemic control and radiosensitization, optimizing physical delivery of radiation, and performing risk stratification with current molecular and genetic techniques. 

Table 2.4 summarizes the strengths and weaknesses of the most widely used enzymes [145]. However, the field of biocatalysis is undergoing rapid development, and it can be expected that some of the limitations will be overcome in the near future by using novel (genetically engineered) enzymes and through the development of novel techniques. Examples of recent developments of potential industrial bioprocesses include ... 

In addition to novel screening techniques also microbial biodiversity, microbial physiology, and molecular genetics were discussed to give better insights in possibilities and limitations of obtaining biocatalysts from nature. 

Protein-protein interactions are studied, for example, by the yeast two-hybrid-system, a genetic technique designed to identify novel protein-protein interactions that were previously detected by biochemical studies. All two-hybrid screening systems rely on the fact that transcriptional activation and DNA-binding domains of transcription factors are modular in nature. In these systems, the coding sequence for the DNA-binding domain of a transcription factor such as Gal4 or LexA is fused to the cDNA of a protein of interest, termed... 

Corich, V., Mattiazzi, A., Soldati, E., Carraro, A., Giacomini, A. (2005). Sau-PCR, a novel amphflcation technique for genetic fingerprinting of microorganisms. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 71, 6401-6406. 

The yeast two-hybrid system is a powerful genetic technique that has been used successfully to study protein-protein interactions in vivo from a wide variety of biological sources, including yeast, plant, and mammalian (Fields and Song, 1989). The two-hybrid system provides a sensitive method to detect relatively weak and transient protein-protein interactions that may not be biochemically detectable. The principle of this assay is based on the reconstitution of transcriptional factors that promotes the expression reporter genes, which then allow the proliferation of yeast under restrictive conditions. Using the two-hybrid system, we successfully isolated IPCEFl and a novel kinesin motor proteins from a rat brain cDNA library as interactors of cytohesin 2 ARF GEF and centaurin-al ARF GAP, respectively (Venkateswarlu, 2003). The procedure used to map the binding domains of cytohesin 2 and IPCEFl, and to characterize the cytohesin 2 and IPCEFl selectivity is outlined here. 

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