Date: 2014-08-25
Type of information: Licensing agreement
Compound: Genetically encoded Orthogonal Protection and Activated Ligation (GOPAL - protein synthesis technology)
Company: MRC Technology (UK) Bio-Techne (USA - MN)
Therapeutic area: Technology - Services
Type agreement: licensing
Action mechanism: Genetically encoded Orthogonal Protection and Activated Ligation (GOPAL) is a protein synthesis technology. GOPAL enables the formation of site-specific isopeptide bonds between proteins. The technology offers an advantage over in vitro synthesis as it allows for the production of a homogenous, high quality product, via the cellular expression of ubiquitin with a protected lysine incorporated at a site-specific, user-defined site. Following purification, the specific isopeptide bond enables creation of a ubiquitin dimer. The technology was developed at the at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology by Jason Chin (Programme Leader and Head of the LMB’s Centre for Chemical & Synthetic Biology) and Satpal Virdee (now a Programme Leader at the MRC Protein Phosphorylation and Ubiquitylation Unit at Dundee University). The work is described in Virdee et al Nat Chem Biol. 2010 Oct;6(10):750-7.
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Details: * On August 26, 2014, MRC Technology, a technology transfer organisation, announced it has negotiated a licence for a protein synthesis technology, Genetically encoded Orthogonal Protection and Activated Ligation (GOPAL), with Bio-Techne, (Techne Corp.), a global life sciences company providing innovative bioactive tools and resources for the research and clinical diagnostic communities. The licence will enable Bio-Techne to develop reagent products using GOPAL. GOPAL enables the formation of site-specific isopeptide bonds between proteins. Initially GOPAL will be applied to develop ubiquitin dimers, with the potential to also develop trimers and tetramers. The technology has already been validated for ubiquitin, however it may also be applied to other proteins. Boston Biochem (a Bio-Techne company) will be applying the technology to its products to determine its full potential, including investigating its use in introducing post-translational modifications into proteins for structural and functional studies.
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