TY - JOUR

T1 - Historical Aspects of Restriction Endonucleases as Intelligent Scissors for Genetic Engineering

AU - Alekseeva, Irina V.

AU - Kuznetsov, Nikita A.

N1 - The work was supported by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, agreement No. 075-15-2021-1085.

PY - 2023/10

Y1 - 2023/10

N2 - Restriction endonucleases are a component of restriction–modification systems, where the main biological function is to protect bacterial cells from incoming foreign DNA molecules. There are four main types of restriction enzymes (types I, II, III, and IV), which differ in protein composition, cofactor requirements, and mode of action. The most studied are representatives of type II, which specifically recognize DNA sequences of 4–8 bp and catalyze DNA cleavage within these sequences or not far from them. The exceptional precision of type II enzymes has made them indispensable for DNA manipulations. Although hundreds of DNA restriction enzymes are currently known, there is still a need for enzymes that recognize new DNA targets. For this reason, the discovery of new natural restriction endonucleases and rational design of their properties (to obtain enzymes with high specificity for a unique nucleotide sequence at a restriction site and without nonspecific activity) will expand the list of enzymes for use in biotechnology and genetic engineering. This review briefly touches upon the main types of restriction endonucleases, their classification, nomenclature, and typical properties, and it concisely describes approaches to the construction of enzymes with altered properties.

AB - Restriction endonucleases are a component of restriction–modification systems, where the main biological function is to protect bacterial cells from incoming foreign DNA molecules. There are four main types of restriction enzymes (types I, II, III, and IV), which differ in protein composition, cofactor requirements, and mode of action. The most studied are representatives of type II, which specifically recognize DNA sequences of 4–8 bp and catalyze DNA cleavage within these sequences or not far from them. The exceptional precision of type II enzymes has made them indispensable for DNA manipulations. Although hundreds of DNA restriction enzymes are currently known, there is still a need for enzymes that recognize new DNA targets. For this reason, the discovery of new natural restriction endonucleases and rational design of their properties (to obtain enzymes with high specificity for a unique nucleotide sequence at a restriction site and without nonspecific activity) will expand the list of enzymes for use in biotechnology and genetic engineering. This review briefly touches upon the main types of restriction endonucleases, their classification, nomenclature, and typical properties, and it concisely describes approaches to the construction of enzymes with altered properties.

KW - DNA cleavage

KW - catalytic mechanism

KW - kinetics

KW - phosphodiester bond hydrolysis

KW - protein-DNA interaction

KW - restriction endonuclease

KW - restriction–modification

KW - structural family

UR - https://www.scopus.com/record/display.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85175091730&origin=inward&txGid=0ee46e03c6578094abf4af2c3fc2bf34

UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/7834ab24-53c6-3495-9774-98c728004312/

U2 - 10.3390/fermentation9100874

DO - 10.3390/fermentation9100874

M3 - Article

VL - 9

JO - Fermentation

JF - Fermentation

SN - 2311-5637

IS - 10

M1 - 874

ER -