ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a general description of the filamentous fungi (excluding Zygomycetes) in which transformation has been achieved, selection markers employed, and cloning vectors with DNA elements used for their construction. Van Gorcom et al. provided a technique for the study of Apsergillus transformation by fusing the E. coli lacZ gene in-frame into the coding region of Aspergillus trpC. The chapter also provides a description of the details of the DNA elements and, consequently, those of the cloning vectors constructed. The integrative transformation-stimulating effect of the ansl fragment was also observed in experiments using other selection markers such as the A. nidulans arg gene or the trp-l (trp-C) gene. Promoter and signal sequences are required for expression and secretion of foreign gene products by fungal hosts. By using integration vectors carrying the promoter and signal sequences and terminator region of the fungal extracellular enzyme genes, various heterologous proteins have been produced by the fungi.
