The link between recognition and replication is fundamental to the operation of the immune system. In recent years, modeling this process in a format of phage- display combinatorial libraries has afforded a powerful tool for obtaining valuable antibodies. However, the ability to readily select and isolate rare catalysts would expand the scope of library technology. A technique in which phage infection controlled the link between recognition and repli- cation was applied to show that chemistry is a selectable process. An antibody that operated by covalent catalysis to form an acyl intermediate restored phage infectivity and allowed selection from a library in which the catalyst consti- tuted 1 in 10~5 members.
展开▼
