Macromolecular Chemistry – Marine DNA modifying enzymes

Description of Research Group

Genome sequences from cold-adapted marine bacteria and metagenome libraries that have been created from several cruises along the Norwegian coast and further north with the groups of islands of Svalbard form the genetic repository for selecting our enzyme gene targets. Our main research efforts have throughout the last ten years been on characterizing cold-adapted DNA-modifying enzymes like DNA polymerases and nucleases. This research has been highly innovation focused and in close collaboration with biotechnological industry. To date we have filed three patents, signed three license agreements and together with ArcticZymes AS have launched five of our enzymes.

Technology, expertise and equipment

Our group works with a broad band of methods and technologies in order to characterize the DNA modifying enzymes. This work includes molecular biology (cloning, mutagenesis) and protein biochemistry with reombinant protein production in E. coli, protein purification in large scale with the Äkta purification system. Enzymatic and biophysical characterization of our targets is performed by using time-resolved activity assays or by denaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis with fluorescence-labelled substrates and thermofluor or microscale thermophoresis for example, respectively. To get more insights into structure-function relationship of our enzymes we also perform protein crystallization and structure determination by X-ray crystallography.