Paper describing methods for monitoring kinase activity, investigating kinase–substrate specificity, examining phosphorylation in planta and the determination of phosphorylation sites in a protein. In addition, strategic considerations for experimental design and variables will be discussed.
Scott C. Peck, the Plant Journal. - [Read Analysis of protein phosphorylation: methods and strategies PDF]
Extreme care should be used to identify and verify positive reactions, however, because cross-reactions are common. Counterstaining is essential for examining worms by immunofluorescence and is used to identify the exact cell in which an antigen appears. Methods for counterstaining include labeling all cells with a fluorescent dye that is specific for nucleic acids (e.g., DAPI or propidium iodide) and using GFP driven by tissue-specific promoters. - [Read Antibody Addition and Detection for Staining Caenorhabditis elegans Protocol]
Mapping Protein/DNA Interactions by Cross-Linking Examining the Distribution of Telomeric and DNA Repair Proteins by ChrIP and Real-Time PCR - [Read Chromatin-IP (ChrIP) Protocol]
Common method for fixing worms is to use paraformaldehyde. This method provides a gentler fixation than the Bouin’s method, but often requires the use of collagenase. This method is particularly good for examining adult worms. - [Read Fixing Caenorhabditis elegans in Paraformaldehyde Protocol]
Protocol for immunoprecipitation of mRNA-protein complexes. In this protocol, an antibody targeting an RBP of interest is used to immunoprecipitate the RBP and any interacting
molecules from a cell lysate. Reverse transcription followed by PCR is then used to identify individual mRNAs isolated with the RBP. This method focuses on examining an association between a specific RBP-mRNA complex, and it is best suited for a small scale screening of known or putative binding partners. - [Read Immunoprecipitation of mRNA-Protein Complexes Protocol]
Germ layers are multipotent tissues that have the ability to differentiate into various tissue types. Isolation and manipulation of germ layers is important for examining differentiation. This protocol describes a method for separating postimplantation germ layers. - [Read Separating Postimplantation Germ Layers Protocol]
Protocol describes the use of FLAG-epitope-tagged proteins for both small-scale analysis and large-scale coimmunoprecipitation of interacting proteins. When examining protein interactions, it is sometimes possible to immunoprecipitate an endogenous protein X directly, without using an epitope tag, if antibodies are available. The advantage of examining interactions of endogenously expressed proteins is that these are likely to be physiological and less likely to be an artifact of overexpression. - [Read Using FLAG Epitope-Tagged Proteins for Coimmunoprecipitation of Interacting Proteins Protocol]
The protocol gives general considerations for the design of targeting vectors for transgenic mice. The protocol shares tips in the design of knock-out and knock-in vectors and some of their strategies for producing homologously recombined embryonic stem cells.