METHODS FOR MUTATING GENES IN CELLS AND ANIMALS USING INSERTIONAL MUTAGENESIS

摘要

The present invention is in the fields of molecular biology, cell biology, and genetics. The invention is directed generally to mutating genes in cells in vitro and in multi-cellular organisms. The invention encompasses methods for mutating genes in cells using polynucleotides that act as insertional mutagens. Such methods are used to achieve mutation of a single gene to achieve a desired phenotype as well as mutation of multiple genes, required cumulatively to achieve a desired phenotype, in a cell or in a multi-cellular organism. The invention is also directed to methods of identifying one or more mutated genes, made by the methods of the invention, in cells and in multi-cellular organisms, by means of a tagging property provided by the insertional mutagen(s). The insertional mutagen thus allows identification of one or more genes that are mutated by insertion of an insertional mutagen. The invention is also directed to methods for correlating a phenotype with a gene by screening or selecting cells that have been mutated by an insertional mutagen incorporated into one or more genes in a cell and identifying the gene or genes causing the phenotype by means of a tagging property in one or more of the insertional mutagens. The invention is also directed to cells and multi-cellular organisms created by the methods of the invention and uses of the cells and multicellular organisms. The invention is also directed to libraries of cells created by the methods of the invention and uses of the libraries.