Yeast Library

Yeast hybrid technology, also known as the yeast two-hybrid system, is a molecular biology technique used to investigate interactions between proteins. This method was first developed by Stanley Fields and Ok-Kyu Song in 1989 and has since become a valuable tool in biological research, particularly for analyzing gene functions and signaling pathways.

It is based on the compositional principle of transcriptional activators in yeast cells, inferring protein-protein interactions by detecting the activity of transcriptional activators.

• Derivative Technologies: Yeast one-hybrid, yeast three-hybrid.

• Technological Applications: Research on protein-protein interactions, DNA-protein interactions.

• Discovery of Novel Interactions: It can identify and characterize previously unknown interactions between proteins, helping to uncover the complex networks within the cell.

• Broad Applicability: The technique is applicable to a wide range of organisms, including humans, facilitating the study of protein functions and interactions across species.

• Signal Amplification: It uses optimal DNA-binding sites, potent activation domains, and metabolic enzymes as reporters to amplify signals from weak interactions, allowing the detection of low-affinity protein interactions.

• Versatility: Beyond protein-protein interactions, the assay can be extended to detect interactions between proteins and other molecules such as DNA, RNA, and small molecules.

• High-Throughput Screening: With advancements, the yeast two-hybrid system enables high-throughput screening, allowing the testing of thousands of protein pairs in a single experiment.

• In Vivo Validation: Compared to other in vitro methods, the yeast two-hybrid assay offers the advantage of studying protein interactions within living cells, increasing the likelihood of discovering biologically relevant interactions.

• Cost-Effectiveness: In some cases, the yeast two-hybrid technique may be more cost-effective than traditional biochemical methods, especially when screening a large number of protein interactions is required.