Abstract: Current molecular biology is based on site-selective scission of DNA by restriction enzymes. However, site-specificity of naturally occurring restriction enzymes is too low to manipulate huge DNA. In order to solve this problem, we developed man-made tools which cut double-stranded DNA at desired site (artificial restriction DNA cutter; ARCUT).1) These tools are composed of (1) Ce(IV)/EDTA complex as molecular scissors and (2) two pseudo-complementary PNAs (blue lines in Fig. 1). By changing the sequences and the lengths of PNA strands, the scission-site and site-specificity are freely chosen.

With the use of ARCUT, even huge DNAs (e.g., the whole genome of human beings) were selectively cut at target site. The resultant scission fragments were ligated with foreign DNAs (green lines in Fig. 1) and expressed in mammalian cells. Applications of ARCUT for promotion of homologous recombination in human cells are also presented.

Brief Biography of the Speaker:
Makoto Komiyama graduated from the University of Tokyo in 1970, and got his Ph.D. from the same University in 1975. After spending four years at Northwestern University (USA) as a postdoctoral fellow, he became an assistant professor at the University of Tokyo, and then an associate professor at University of Tsukuba. From 1991, he has been a professor of the University of Tokyo. His main research area is bioorganic and bioinorganic chemistry. He received Awards for Young Scientist from the Chemical Society of Japan, Japan IBM Science Award, Award from the Rare Earth Society of Japan, Inoue Prize for Science, The Award of the Society of Polymer Science, Japan, Award from Cyclodextrin Society of Japan, and others.