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| Alter genes of or add new genes to an organism to increase productivity, to expand metabolic repertoire, or to facilitate growth |
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use endogenous genes - increase copy number, promoter manipulation or eradicate "problem genes"
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bolster endogenous metabolism - enhance secretion, folding chaperones, or precursor pools
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use exogenous genes
- from related species (e.g. change temperature optimum if use a hot spring bacterial source of gene) - from unrelated species (adds new enzyme /metabolism) |
| 1. Biotech Uses of Recombinant Organisms |
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better production
- simply higher levels in normal tissue - make animals into reactors, glands for continual production (milk, etc.) |
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novel products - plant / virus vaccine (eat a recombinant potato instead of getting a shot)
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use altered metabolism to make new molecules
- "plastics" in plant - new antibiotics in Streptomyces that cannot be degraded by pathogenic bacteria |
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stimulate new symbiosis
- Rhyzobium bacteria / plant & N2 fixation (need less fertilizer) - Bioremediation - bacterial communities that degrade pollutants to harmless compounds |
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validate target molecules - various gene "knock-out" & "knock-in" techniques to alter organisms so that the animal/plant is a better model system of disease (genetically predisposed to disease) allowing the altered organisms to be used to test medicenes or theories.
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| 2. Gene Delivery |
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viral vectors
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Ti plasmid for plants
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bolistic: shoot DNA-coated particles with a "gun" into plants & fungus with tough cell walls
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chimeraplasty: precise genetic surgery |
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Return to College Education and Training |
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