|
|
Article: Yeast adds new amino acids to its proteins.(Amending the Genetic Code)
- Article from:
- Science News
- Article date:
- August 16, 2003
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 Science Service, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
With only ram exceptions, every organism constructs proteins from just 20 building blocks called amino acids. Recently, however, researchers modified Escherichia coli bacteria so that the single-celled organisms also make an alien amino acid and incorporate it into proteins (SN: 1/25/03, p. 53).
Now, the same scientists have used genetic engineering techniques to coerce more-complicated organisms into placing unnatural amino acids into proteins. Led by Peter G. Schultz of the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, Calif., the team created yeast cells that add one of five unnatural amino acids to their natural 20-piece construction set. To give the yeast this ...