A genetic selection method for expression products that induce apoptosis in adherent mammalian cell lines.

The process of apoptosis is carefully controlled in cells, and different cell types display different sensitivities to pro-apoptotic stimuli. The prospect of exploiting such differences for treatment of diseases such as cancer, via novel therapeutic agents, is extremely attractive. Therefore, genetic selections for novel expression products that kill cells may have considerable value.

Oligonucleotide-conjugated beads for transdominant genetic experiments.

Transdominant genetics using expression libraries can identify proteins and peptides that affect cell division. In conjunction with these libraries, oligo-nucleotide-conjugated beads and flow cytometry were used to test a strategy that potentially expands the range of such genetic studies. The experimental approach involved creation of tagged expression libraries, introduction of these libraries into cells, growth of the cultured cells for several generations and recovery on oligonucleotide-conjugated beads of sequences that encode growth-modulatory proteins or peptides.