TABLE OF CONTENTS This part is all about proteins, genetic engineering, genomics and bioinformatics, and accordingly this part is divided into four chapters. The first chapter gives more information about proteins, their structure-function relationships, and the role of proteins in the biological systems and their commercial applications. It discusses the primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary structures of proteins, the molecular forces involved in the structural stabilization of the protein molecules and their involvement in the functional properties of proteins. The altered-protein structure and its relationship with certain diseased states is also described. The commercial application of proteins in different areas such as medical and pharmaceutical, food and agriculture, and other industries, its commercial extraction and purification, etc., is also discussed. The last part of this chapter deals with the proteomics, an upcoming and very promising field, its applications, and various techniques involved in its studies and applications.
The second chapter is about recombinant DNA technology (rDNA Technology). The tools of recombinant-DNA techniques such as restriction enzymes or molecular scissors, various types of plasmids and vectors, and their use in the technique of gene cloning genetic engineering are introduced. Construction of DNA libraries, transformation of host cells by recombinant DNA, screening and identification of recombinants or genetically-transformed cells are also introduced in this chapter. The other important techniques such as Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), DNA hybridization reactions such as Southern hybridization, DNA sequencing,...
