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Algal fuel, also known as algal biofuel, or algal oil is an alternative to liquid fossil fuels, the petroleum products. This is also used as a source of energy-rich oils. Also, algal fuels are an alternative to commonly known biofuel sources obtained from corn and sugarcane. The energy crisis and the world food crisis have […]
The green fluorescent protein (GFP) is a protein containing 238 amino acid residues of 26.9 kDa that exhibits bright green fluorescence when exposed to blue to ultraviolet range (395 nm). GFP refers to the protein first isolated from the jellyfish Aequorea victoria. GFP is an excellent tool in biology due to its ability to form […]
Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) Synthetic polymers are non-degradable and pollute the soil and when burnt add dioxin in the environment which cause cancer. So, efforts were taken to provide an alternative eco-friendly biopolymers. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) and polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) are group of degradable biopolymers which have several medical applications such as drug delivery, scaffold and heart valves. PHAs […]
Golden rice is a variety of Oryza sativa (rice) produced through genetic engineering of biosynthesized beta-carotene, a precursor of Vitamin-A in the edible parts of rice developed by Ingo Potrykus and his group. The aim is to produce a fortified food to be grown and consumed in areas with a shortage of dietary Vitamin-A. Golden […]
Agrobacterium mediated genetic engineering technique was followed to produce Flavr-Savr tomato, i.e., retaining the natural colour and flavor of tomato. Through genetic engineering the ripening process of the tomato is slowed down and thus prevent it from softening and to increase the shelf life. The tomato was made more resistant to rotting by Agrobacterium mediated […]
Insect resistance – Bt Crops: i. Bt Cotton Bt cotton is a genetically modified organism (GMO) or genetically modified pest resistant plant cotton variety, which produces an insecticide activity to bollworm. Strains of the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis produce over 200 different Bt toxins, each harmful to different insects. Most Bt toxins are insecticidal to the […]
Trade name ‘Basta’ refers to a non-selective herbicide containing the chemical compound phosphinothricin. Basta herbicide tolerant gene PPT (L-phosphinothricin) was isolated from Medicago sativa plant. It inhibits the enzyme glutamine synthase which is involved in ammonia assimilation. The PPT gene was introduced into tobacco and transgenic tobacco produced was resistant to PPT. Similar enzyme was […]
Weeds are a constant problem in crop fields. Weeds not only compete with crops for sunlight, water, nutrients and space but also acts as a carrier for insects and diseases. If left uncontrolled, weeds can reduce crop yields significantly. Transgenic plants contain a novel DNA introduced into the genome. Glyphosate herbicide produced by Monsanto, USA […]
All characters of organism are the result of expression of different genes which are regions of nuclear DNA. This expression involves transcription and translation. Transcription refers to the copying of genetic information from one strand of the DNA (called sense strand) by RNA. This RNA, as soon as it formed cannot be straight away sent […]
Genome editing or gene editing is a group of technologies that has the ability to change an organism’s DNA. These technologies allow genetic material to be added, removed, or altered at particular locations in the genome. Several approaches to genome editing have been developed. A recent one is known as CRISPR-Cas9, which is short form […]
The whole complement of genes that determine all characteristics of an organism is called genome. Which may be nuclear genome, mitochondrial genome or plastid genome. Genome of many plants contain both functional and non-expressive DNA proteins. Genome project refers to a project in which the whole genome of plant is analysed using sequence analysis and […]
An antibiotic resistance marker is a gene that produces a protein that provides cells with resistance to an antibiotic. Bacteria with transformed DNA can be identified by growing on a medium containing an antibiotic. Recombinants will grow on these media as they contain genes encoding resistance to antibiotics such ampicillin, chloro amphenicol, tetracycline or kanamycin, […]
Blotting techniques are widely used analytical tools for the specific identification of desired DNA or RNA fragments from larger number of molecules. Blotting refers to the process of immobilization of sample nucleic acids or solid support (nitrocellulose or nylon membranes.) The blotted nucleic acids are then used as target in the hybridization experiments for their […]
Electrophoresis is a separating technique used to separate different biomolecules with positive and negative charges. Principle By applying electricity (DC) the molecules migrate according to the type of charges they have. The electrical charges on different molecules are variable. Agarose GEL Electrophoresis It is used mainly for the purification of specific DNA fragments. Agarose is […]
It is a powerful method used for screening of recombinant plasmid. In this method, a reporter gene lacZ is inserted in the vector. The lacZ encodes the enzyme β-galactosidase and contains several recognition sites for restriction enzyme. β-galactosidase breaks a synthetic substrate called X-gal (5-bromo-4-chloro-indolyl-βD-galacto-pyranoside) into an insoluble blue coloured product. If a foreign gene […]
In the direct gene transfer methods, the foreign gene of interest is delivered into the host plant without the help of a vector. The following are some of the common methods of direct gene transfer in plants. a. Chemical mediated gene transfer: Certain chemicals like polyethylene glycol (PEG) and dextran sulphate induce DNA uptake into […]
The propagation of the recombinant DNA molecules must occur inside a living system or host. Many types of host cells are available for gene cloning which includes E.coli, yeast, animal or plant cells. The type of host cell depends upon the cloning experiment. E.coli is the most widely used organism as its genetic make-up has […]
Vectors Another major component of a gene cloning experiment is a vector such as a plasmid. A Vector is a small DNA molecule capable of self-replication and is used as a carrier and transporter of DNA fragment which is inserted into it for cloning experiments. Vector is also called cloning vehicle or cloning DNA. Vectors […]
Restriction Enzymes The two enzymes responsible for restricting the growth of bacteriophage in Escherichia coli were isolated in the year 1963. One was the enzyme which added methyl groups to DNA, while the other cut DNA. The latter was called restriction endonuclease. A restriction enzyme or restriction endonuclease is an enzyme that cleaves DNA into […]
Genetic engineering or recombinant DNA technology or gene cloning is a collective term that includes different experimental protocols resulting in the modification and transfer of DNA from one organism to another. The definition for conventional recombination was already given in Unit II. Conventional recombination involves exchange or recombination of genes between homologous chromosomes during meiosis. […]