Life Technologies introduces three next generation genetic engineering kits

Life Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ: LIFE) today announced the launch of three next generation GeneArt® genetic engineering kits that allow molecular and synthetic biologists unprecedented speed, flexibility, precision, and efficiency for the seamless cloning, assembly, and editing of genetic material.

The GeneArt® Seamless PLUS Cloning and Assembly Kit allows investigators to complete complex assembly projects in days that would take weeks with typically available methods. The kits use a proprietary enzyme mix to recognize and precisely assemble DNA fragments without the need for restriction digestion, ligation, or introduction of extra DNA sequence (seamless). The kits are designed to work with any vector a researcher chooses plus 1 to 4 fragments (or more depending on fragment sizes and workflow) in an in vitro, typically <30 minute room temperature reaction to create constructs up to 40kb in size.

The newly introduced GeneArt® Seamless Cloning and Assembly Enzyme Mix is the economical choice for creating constructs up to 13kb with the option for high-throughput assembly.

The GeneArt® Site-Directed Mutagenesis PLUS System can be employed to introduce deletions, insertions and substitutions ranging from small to large fragment sizes and can facilitate single or multi-site mutagenesis. Up to three sites can be edited in a single plasmid at greater than 90% efficiency. Up to 25 nucleotides can be altered in a single site, and results are delivered typically in less than three hours for plasmids up to 14 kb in size.

"Typically, mutagenesis efficiency decreases as multiple sites are targeted," said Nathan Wood, general manager and vice president of synthetic biology at Life Technologies. "The GeneArt® kits maintain high efficiency over multiple sites, an advantage for our customers."

"Our scientists assemble and manipulate genetic material on a daily basis," said Wood. "They are deeply connected to the need for speed and reliability in cloning, assembly and mutagenesis systems, and they also understand that our customers need systems designed to handle different levels of complexity."

The new kits extend Life's current market-leading product offerings in assembly and mutagenesis kits, the GeneArt® Seamless Cloning and Assembly Kit (for up to four fragments and constructs up to13kb), the GeneArt® High-Order Genetic Assembly Kit (a yeast-based system for up to 10 fragments and constructs up to 110kb), and the GeneArt® Site-Directed Mutagenesis System. With the new all-in-one enzyme/buffer mix and increased room temperature stability, the new kits offer increased flexibility, speed, and the option for high-throughput workflows.  The new Mutagenesis PLUS system offers all of the single-site functionality of the current mutagenesis kits but with multi-site mutagenesis, the all-in-one enzyme/buffer mix, and increased room-temperature stability.

All products include access to Life Technologies' free online GeneArt® Primer and Construct Design Tool for Seamless or High-Order Assembly and Mutagenesis:
http://bioinfo.invitrogen.com/oligoDesigner/.

This tool facilitates the in silico design, assembly, or mutagenesis of a DNA molecule using GeneArt® technology. The GeneArt® Design Tool:

• Guides researchers through construct design, including fragment import, order, and orientation
• Checks for areas of homology and potential design issues
• Creates primers for pre-cloning or incorporating end-homology between fragments (if needed) or primers for mutagenesis, depending your workflow
• Shows updated amino acid sequence for mutagenized constructs
• Allows one-click online ordering for custom primers (not available in all countries)
• Generates final construct sequence, in GenBank format, and map files for easy download or import into Vector NTI® software