IN-VITRO VIRUS - BONDING OF MESSENGER-RNA BEARING PUROMYCIN AT THE 3'-TERMINAL END TO THE C-TERMINAL END OF ITS ENCODED PROTEIN ON THE RIBOSOME IN-VITRO

Adequate means for genotype assignment to phenotype is essential in ev olutionary molecular engineering. In this study, construction of 'in v itro virus' was carried out in which a genotype molecule (mRNA) covale ntly binds to the phenotype molecule (protein) through puromycin on th e ribosome in a cell-free translation system. Bonding efficiency was s imilar to 10%, thus indicating a population of the in vitro virus to h ave similar to 10(12) protein variants, this number being 10(4) that i n the phage display. The in vitro virus is useful for examining protei n evolution in a test tube and the results may possibly serve as basis for a general method for selecting proteins possessing the most desir able functions. (C) 1997 Federation of European Biochemical Societies.