National Research Council of Canada

Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, As Represented by the National

Astrazeneca Ab

Shi-Hsiang Shen

Sultan Ahmad

Claes Wahlestedt

Philippe Walker

Dajan O'Donnell

Paola Lembo

Yves Fortin

Steve N Slilaty

Hui-Fen Zhao

Denis Banville

Susan Lebel

Lison Bastien

Pierre Chretien

A chimeric transactivator comprises a transcription activation domain, a repressor protein DNA binding domain and the bacterial DNA gyrase B subunit. A target gene is operatively linked to operator DNA sequences recognized by the repressor binding domain. The addition of the antibiotic coumermycin results in a coumermycin-switched dimerization of the transactivator, which then binds to operator DNA sequences and activates transcription of the target gene. The addition of novobiocin switches off expression of the target gene by abolishing coumermycin-induced dimerization of the transactivator.

Coumermycin/novobicin-regulated gene expression system

Coumermycin/novobiocin-regulated gene expression system

The present invention is directed to a novel receptor for galanin which has been designated as galanin receptor 2. The invention encompasses both the receptor protein as well as nucleic acids encoding the protein. In addition, the present invention is directed to methods and compositions which rely upon either GAL-R2 proteins or nucleic acids.

Assay employing human or rat GAL-R2 galanin receptor

The present invention is directed to methods for assaying a test compound's ability to alter the expression of novel receptor for galanin which has been designated as galanin receptor 2. The invention also encompasses both the receptor protein as well as nucleic acids encoding the protein. In addition, the present invention is directed to additional methods and compositions which rely upon either GAL-R2 proteins or nucleic acids.

Methods for assaying expression of novel galanin receptors

The present invention is directed to galanin receptor 2 (GAL-R2) proteins and nucleic acids.

Galanin receptor 2 proteins and nucleic acids

The present invention is directed to novel G protein-coupled receptors that are found predominantly in the dorsal root ganglia. The invention encompasses both the receptor proteins as well as nucleic acids encoding the proteins. In addition, the present invention is directed to methods and compositions which utilize the receptors.

Human G protein-coupled receptor expressed in the dorsal root ganglia

G protein-coupled receptors from the rat and human

The present invention relates to recombinant .beta.-1,3-glucanase essentially free of proteases. The enzyme is obtained through the use of a recombinant DNA expression vector which comprises a DNA sequence encoding the .beta.-1,3-glucanase gene or mutants and variants thereof placed under the control of an exogenous expression promoter, preferably a bacterial promoter. Also, the .beta.-1,3-glucanase gene may include sequences flanking the open reading frame of the native .beta.-1,3-glucanase gene. The present invention also relates to a microorganism transformed with a recombinant DNA expression vector comprising the .beta.-1,3-glucanase gene or mutants and variants thereof under the control of an exogenous expression promoter.

Lytic .beta.-1,3-glucanase gene

The present invention relates to an approach for conducting site-directed mutagenesis using double-stranded DNA templates. The approach involves the development of a method for generating structures capable of directing full-length complementary-strand synthesis from double-stranded plasmid DNA. These structures are formed following heat denaturation and cooling of linearized plasmid DNA molecules in the presence of what is referred to as a 'closing oligonucleotide'. A 'closing oligonucleotide' is a single-stranded oligonucleotide consisting of a sequence complementary to either or both free ends of one of the two plasmid DNA strands. The 'closing oligonucleotide' therefore functions as an agent for recircularization of a DNA strand and generation of a primer-circular template structure suitable for polymerase-dependent full-length complementary-strand synthesis and ligation into a covalently-closed heteroduplex DNA molecule. When combined with a mutagenic oligonucleotide and uracil-substituted DNA templates, this approach allows site-directed mutagenesis to be performed directly on double-stranded DNA with a mutant formation efficiency of about 50%, a level amenable to rapid screening by DNA sequencing.

Growing community of inventors

Beaconsfield, Canada

Shi-Hsiang Shen