PUC19 - Function

Function

This plasmid is introduced into a bacterial cell by a process called "transformation", where it can multiply and express itself. However due to the presence of MCS and several restriction sites, a foreign piece of DNA of choice can be introduced into it by inserting it into place in MCS region. The cells which have taken up the plasmid can be differentiated from cells which have not taken up the plasmid by growing it on media with Ampicillin. Only the cells with the plasmid containing the ampicillin resistance (ampR) gene will survive. Furthermore, the transformed cells containing the plasmid with the gene of our interest can be distinguished from cells with the plasmid but without the gene of interest, just by looking at the colour of the colony they make on agar media supplemented with IPTG and X-gal. Recombinants are white, whereas non-recombinants are blue in colour. This is the most notable feature of pUC19.