Selectable marker
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A selectable marker is a gene introduced into a cell, especially a bacterium or to cells in culture, that confers a trait suitable for artificial selection. They are a type of reporter gene used in laboratory microbiology, molecular biology, and genetic engineering to indicate the success of a transfection or other procedure meant to introduce foreign DNA into a cell. Selectable markers are often antibiotic resistance genes; bacteria that have been subjected to a procedure to introduce foreign DNA are grown on a medium containing an antibiotic, and those bacterial colonies that can grow have successfully taken up and expressed the introduced genetic material.
An alternative to a selectable marker is a screenable marker, which allows the researcher to distinguish between wanted and unwanted cells.
Examples of selectable markers include:
[edit] References
- ^ Edited By C. Arias, B.S., C.P.T.
- ^ Callmigration.org: Gene targeting
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