New novel protein-genome interaction mapping technology

Aug 14 2006

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, The Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI) and Cancer Research Technology Limited (CRT) today have released details of the development and commercialisation of a powerful protein-genome interaction mapping technology termed 'DamID.'

DamID, developed by scientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the NKI, maps protein-genome interactions using tethered DNA adenine methyltransferase to create unique tags, which mark binding sites. This novel technology addresses current limitations of existing techniques to identify in vivo genome binding sites of proteins.

The technology has been validated in both Drosophila and mammalian systems and studies published in a series of peer-reviewed, high-impact journals. DamID has direct application within the fields of transcription, DNA replication, chromatin modelling, chromosome segregation and genomic maintenance. Genomic tiling arrays have also been utilised to map genome-wide protein binding with an approximate resolution of 1 kb. Such analyses facilitate the construction of transcriptional regulatory networks.

CRT has been granted exclusive rights to commercialise this new technology and intends to partner with life science reagents companies to ensure that DamID is available to commercial and academic research communities alike. Revenues generated will be shared with the NKI and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.