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Updated: Aug 2, 2025

In Vitro Directed Evolution of a Restriction Endonuclease with More Stringent Specificity
Published on: March 25, 2020
Evolution of Restriction-Modification Systems Consisting of One Restriction Endonuclease and Two DNA
Anastasiya S Fokina1, Anna S Karyagina2,3,4, Ivan S Rusinov3
1Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, 119234, Russia.
Abstract:
Some restriction-modification systems contain two DNA methyltransferases. In the present work, we have classified such systems according to the families of catalytic domains present in the restriction endonucleases and both DNA methyltransferases. Evolution of the restriction-modification systems containing an endonuclease with a NOV_C family domain and two DNA methyltransferases, both with DNA_methylase family domains, was investigated in detail. Phylogenetic tree of DNA methyltransferases from the systems of this class consists of two clades of the same size. Two DNA methyltransferases of each restriction-modification system of this class belong to the different clades. This indicates independent evolution of the two methyltransferases. We detected multiple cross-species horizontal transfers of the systems as a whole, as well as the cases of gene transfer between the systems.
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