Nucleic acids genetic engineering

The major classes of organic compounds common to living systems are lipids pro terns nucleic acids and carbohydrates Carbohydrates are very familiar to us— we call many of them sugars They make up a substantial portion of the food we eat and provide most of the energy that keeps the human engine running Carbohy drates are structural components of the walls of plant cells and the wood of trees Genetic information is stored and transferred by way of nucleic acids specialized derivatives of carbohydrates which we 11 examine m more detail m Chapter 28... 

Nucleic acids are the molecules of the genetic apparatus. They direct protein biosynthesis in the body and are the raw materials of genetic technology (see Genetic engineering). Most often polynucleotides are synthesized microbiologicaHy, or at least enzymatically, but chemical synthesis is possible. 

The ability to synthesize chemically short sequences of single-stranded DNA (oligonucleotides) is an essential part of many aspects of genetic engineering. The method most frequently employed is that of solid-phase synthesis, where the basic philosophy is the same as that in solid-phase peptide synthesis (see Section 13.6.3). In other words, the growing nucleic acid is attached to a suitable solid support, protected nucleotides are supplied in the appropriate sequence, and each addition is followed by repeated coupling and deprotection cycles. 

Enhancing the overall resistivity of the body is observed upon treatment with a number of known drugs immunostimulants (caffeine, phenamine, methyluracil), vitamins (retinol, ascorbic acid, vitamins of group B), nucleic acid derivatives, and also drugs of natural or genetically engineered origin made specifically for this purpose. 

To understand how these modem methods work, it is necessary first to review some general laboratory techniques ubiquitous in genetic engineering. Among the most important are gel electrophoresis of nucleic acids, nucleic acid hybridization assays, and the polymerase chain reaction. 

As they learned how proteins are made from nucleic acids, scientists developed tools to alter and map this process in order to do such things as treat human disease, uncover submicroscopic archaeologic evidence, and create new agricultural crops. All these activities come under the title of genetic engineering. 

Mann, M.J. (1998) E2F decoy oligonucleotide for genetic engineering of vascular bypass grafts. Antisense Nucleic Acids Drug Dev., 8, 171-176. 

Microinjection involves the direct injection of nucleic acids into the nucleus or cytoplasm of target cells and is the simplest approach for gene delivery. Thin glass capillaries are used to inject nanoliters of nucleic acid solution into cells. One major drawback of this method is obviously the throughput every single cell has to be manipulated individually. This limits the use of microinjection to applications in which individual cell manipulation is possible, such as genetic engineering of... 

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