Textco BioSoftware has released an enhanced
version of their DNA plasmid mapping software,
Gene Construction Kit (GCK 3.0). Included among
the enhancements in GCK 3.0 are three brand new
modules:

° The new PCR Analysis module allows a user to
select a region of DNA, choose the amplification
parameters desired, and have the program suggest
the best matching primers surrounding the target
region. The primers can then be added to the
construct display as selectable, graphic
elements. Amplified regions can be selected
through a double-click, and copied to the
clipboard for insertion into other constructs via
a simple paste command.

° A Shotgun Cloning module is designed to save
users hours of copying and pasting between source
and target vectors to produce a library. You can
choose a source vector, define a digestion
enzyme, and GCK automatically generates all the
possible fragments — then inserts the fragments
into the correct site on the target vector. A
library of all possible constructs is
automatically generated and saved to a user
specified folder — offering a way to determine
the best approach to subcloning a fragment.

° A new Database Search module allows users to
enter DNA, Protein or Keyword query information
once, specify the databases to search (KEGG,
EntrezGene, PDB, PFAM, etc.) and submit a single
search to all of them, with one click of the
mouse. GCK will take care of formatting the query
for each database and then return all results
together in the user’s preferred internet browser.

In addition, GCK 3.0 includes several
user-requested enhancements such as displaying
introns, and being able to translate across them;
new options to refine printing of multi-page
documents; and updates to the GenBank importer
code to conform to NCBI’s updated Entrez
Programming Utilities Service, resulting in
faster search and retrieve options, with an
expandable parser.

GCK 3.0 is compatible with Mac OS 10.2 and
higher, as well as Windows XP & Vista. To
celebrate the release of GCK 3.0, Textco
BioSoftware is offering special “introductory
discount” pricing for both new GCK licenses and
upgrades. Go to Textco BioSoftware’s web site
(http://www.textco.com) for details. A demo is
available for download.