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AssigneesThe Chinese University of Hong Kong, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
InventorsLiting DUAN, Kai LIU, Chao YANG, Peiyuan HUANG
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The present invention provides a recombinantly produced fusion protein that includes an optically responsive element fused to a downstream signaling element derived from an active domain of a signaling molecule, such as the intracellular domain of a receptor protein, and is therefore capable of triggering the signal transduction cascade by light exposure rather than the native activating event to the signaling molecule, such as the binding of a ligand to the receptor. The nucleic acid encoding the fusion protein and the host cells containing the fusion protein or the nucleic acid are also provided. Further provided are methods of using light exposure to achieve desirable downstream effects of a signal transduction pathway normally mediated by the signaling molecule, for example, in the promotion optic neuronal cell proliferation, survival, and/or regeneration.
A fusion protein comprising an optic-responsive element and a downstream signaling element derived from a domain of a signaling molecule through which the signaling molecule activates its downstream effector molecules, wherein upon exposure to a light within a pre-determined wavelength the fusion protein activates a downstream signal transduction pathway mediated by the signaling molecule, and wherein the optic-responsive element is a modified Arabidopsis thaliana cryptochrome 2 (CRY2) comprising any one or two or more of the mutations independently selected from the group consisting of:
13-14. (canceled)
17-20. (canceled)
27-28. (canceled)
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.