Workshop II
Presentation Title:
Dissecting Molecular Recognition with Shotgun Scanning Mutagenesis
Speaker:
Gregory Weiss
Institution:
University of California
Irvine, CA
Abstract:
The Weiss laboratory dissects biological molecular recognition using phage display and
combinatorial libraries. In particular, the laboratory uses shotgun scanning with limited
substitutions of wild-type and alanine or other residues in specific positions to reverse engineer
side chain contributions to protein functionality. This approach has been used to identify forces
responsible for the unusually strong streptavidin-biotin interaction and the stability of M13 coat
proteins. Streptavidin shotgun scanning libraries identify residues contributing to the
femtomolar KD interaction with biotin both directly and indirectly. Other projects involve the
dissection of protein-DNA interactions.