Glasgow: Designer recombinases to cut and paste chosen DNA sequences

Licensing opportunity

Scientists at the University of Glasgow are developing designer recombinases and transposases, which will both allow for more efficient targeting of gene integration in organisms with no prior genetic modification, and for knockouts of chosen genes.

In gene therapy or genetic engineering of model or crop organisms, it is desirable to integrate foreign DNA stably into the host genome. Site-specific recombination and transposition are both used to achieve this. A major disadvantage of transposition in gene delivery applications is its random nature. DNA can insert into heterochromatin where it is poorly expressed, or adjacent to an important cellular gene whose expression can be disrupted.

And while site-specific recombination can be used to integrate DNA at a chosen locus, it generally needs a pre-existing recombination site to insert into.

The researchers are looking for commercial partners to develop commercial applications for the recombinases.