
What do you expect to see in E. coli digested with EcoRI?
#1
Posted 12 February 2012 - 04:38 AM
#2
Posted 12 February 2012 - 01:13 PM
#3
Posted 13 February 2012 - 05:03 AM
1) EcoRI was isolated from E.coli. So in order for E.coli to protects its own DNA, every EcoRI site on its DNA was methylated. When agarose gel was runned, very likely supercoiled DNA will be seen.
2) EcoRI site on E.coli DNA was not methylated. Hence, enzyme EcoRI will cut up E.coli DNA many times. This produced a smear effect on agarose gel.
Please enlightened me....
#4
Posted 13 February 2012 - 03:05 PM
What would an uncut bacterial genome look like on a gel?
#5
Posted 13 February 2012 - 08:44 PM
Edited to add- it matters which strain of E.coli your DNA is isolated from though, as there are strains produced which do not have methyltranferases.
Edited by leelee, 13 February 2012 - 08:48 PM.
#6
Posted 13 February 2012 - 09:49 PM
https://picasaweb.go...feat=directlink
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I'm still learning but from the looks of it, EcoRI will still cut regardless of whether the DNA is methylated or not.
While it's true that it's suicidal to make something "that will chop up its own DNA", could it be different in vivo? bob1, could it be that in vivo, the sensitivity towards methylation is different?
I know it doesn't make much sense how/why the protein could have altered sensitivity in different environment (in vivo vs purified)
The expression of EcoRI for commercial purposes, at least for NEB, was done in the E. coli host.
#7
Posted 14 February 2012 - 01:27 PM
As far as I know, EcoR1 is not sensitive to any prokaryotic methylation system. I would presume that restriction enzymes have some sort of evolutionary advantage due to the fact that they are produced by the bacteria that they come from. I would hypothesize that they are used to chop invading DNA up and that the genome is protected and repairable, so it doesn't matter to the host that it is producing the RE.As I understand it, EcoRI won't cut E.coli DNA due to protective methylation. Why would a bacteria produce an endonuclease that will chop up its own DNA? Doesn't make sense. The use of endonuclease to bacteria is to destroy non-self DNA.
I don't think the sensitivity to methylation will be different in different environments, but I don't really know.While it's true that it's suicidal to make something "that will chop up its own DNA", could it be different in vivo? bob1, could it be that in vivo, the sensitivity towards methylation is different?
I know it doesn't make much sense how/why the protein could have altered sensitivity in different environment (in vivo vs purified)
#8
Posted 14 February 2012 - 07:38 PM
You can buy it from NEB- http://www.neb.com/n...roductM0211.asp
Edited to add- still looking for a good reference that fully explains this, as all of the ones I've found are talking about non canonical sequences and whilst they refer to the above information (the protection of the host DNA by methylation) I can't find any of the original references, or I don't have access, or they are in Polish

Edited by leelee, 14 February 2012 - 07:40 PM.
#9
Posted 14 February 2012 - 07:43 PM