Identification of genes

• Main Author: DAVID WILLIAM HOLDEN
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 28.02.2006
• Subjects: BEER; BIOCHEMISTRY; CHEMISTRY; COMPOSITIONS OR TEST PAPERS THEREFOR; COMPOSITIONS THEREOF; CONDITION-RESPONSIVE CONTROL IN MICROBIOLOGICAL ORENZYMOLOGICAL PROCESSES; CULTURE MEDIA; DERIVATIVES THEREOF; ENZYMOLOGY; HUMAN NECESSITIES; HYGIENE; INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIRCHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES; MEASURING; MEASURING OR TESTING PROCESSES INVOLVING ENZYMES, NUCLEICACIDS OR MICROORGANISMS; MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; METALLURGY; MICROBIOLOGY; MICROORGANISMS OR ENZYMES; MUTATION OR GENETIC ENGINEERING; NUCLEIC ACIDS; NUCLEOSIDES; NUCLEOTIDES; ORGANIC CHEMISTRY; PEPTIDES; PHYSICS; PREPARATIONS FOR MEDICAL, DENTAL, OR TOILET PURPOSES; PROCESSES OF PREPARING SUCH COMPOSITIONS; PROPAGATING, PRESERVING OR MAINTAINING MICROORGANISMS; SPECIFIC THERAPEUTIC ACTIVITY OF CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS ORMEDICINAL PREPARATIONS; SPIRITS; SUGARS; TESTING; VINEGAR; WINE

A method for identifying a microorganism having a reduced adaptation to a particular environment comprising the steps of: (I) providing a plurality of microorganisms each of which is independently mutated by the insertional inactivation of a gene with a nucleic acid comprising a unique marker sequence so that each mutant contains a different marker sequence, or clones of the said microorganism; (2) providing individually a stored sample of each mutant produced by step (1) and providing individually stored nucleic acid comprising the unique marker sequence from each individual mutant; (3) introducing a plurality of mutants produced by step (1) into the said particular environment and allowing those microorganisms which are able to do so to grow in the said environment; (4) retrieving microorganisms from the said environment or a selected part thereof and isolating the nucleic acid from the retrieved microorganisms; (5) comparing any marker sequences in the nucleic acid isolated in step (4) to the unique marker sequence of each individual mutant stored as in step (2); and (6) selecting an individual mutant which does not contain any of the marker sequences as isolated in step (4).