School of Biotechnology · Genetic engineering
Gene Cloning & Recombinant DNA Technology
Cloning a gene into a vector is a foundational skill in genetic engineering and protein production. In this course you design a construct, build it at the bench and verify it, the way it is done in research laboratories.
Course overview
Gene Cloning & Recombinant DNA Technology begins with construct design on the computer: choosing a vector, planning restriction sites and simulating the cloning in software. You then digest, ligate and transform, and screen colonies by blue–white selection and colony PCR.
Verification is treated as seriously as construction: diagnostic digests, plasmid preparation and analysis of Sanger sequencing results confirm that the construct is exactly what you designed.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course you will be able to:
- Design a cloning strategy and simulate it in silico
- Perform restriction digestion, dephosphorylation and ligation
- Prepare competent cells and transform them
- Screen recombinant colonies by blue–white selection and colony PCR
- Verify constructs by diagnostic digestion and sequencing analysis
Skills you will practise
Eligibility and prerequisites
Who can apply
- Students and graduates of B.Sc., M.Sc., B.Tech., M.Tech., B.Pharm., M.Pharm. or a PhD programme in biotechnology, microbiology, biochemistry, molecular biology, genetics, life sciences, pharmacy or allied health sciences
- Laboratory staff, research assistants and faculty who want structured bench training
- Participants must be 18 or older and follow the laboratory safety induction on day one
Prerequisites
- Molecular Biology Techniques or equivalent PCR and gel experience
Best suited to
- Postgraduate students in biotechnology, molecular biology and genetics
- Researchers starting protein-expression or genetic-engineering projects
- Graduates of the Molecular Biology Techniques course
Module-wise syllabus
5 modules, each with a bench practical performed by every participant.
Topics
- Vectors, origins and selection markers
- Restriction mapping and compatible ends
- In-silico cloning
Topics
- PCR with restriction-site primers
- Double digestion
- Gel extraction and clean-up
Topics
- Insert-to-vector ratios
- Competent-cell preparation
- Heat-shock transformation
Topics
- Blue–white selection
- Colony PCR
- Picking and growing clones
Topics
- Plasmid preparation
- Diagnostic digests
- Reading Sanger chromatograms
Practical sessions and projects
Practical assessment
Practical assessment
Present your verified construct with the design, screening data and annotated sequencing alignment.
Assessed on technique, accuracy, safety and the laboratory record. A pass is required for the certificate.
- Construct design
Design a cloning strategy for an insert and simulate it in a sequence editor.
- Preparing insert and vector
Amplify and digest the insert and vector and purify the fragments.
- Ligation and transformation
Ligate the fragments, transform competent E. coli and plate on selective media.
- Screening
Screen colonies by colour and colony PCR and select positive clones.
- Verification
Confirm the construct by digestion and analyse its sequencing trace against the design.
Instruments, techniques and materials
Instruments and equipment
Techniques you will perform
- Restriction digestion
- Ligation
- Competent-cell preparation
- Heat-shock transformation
- Blue–white screening
- Colony PCR
- Sanger-trace analysis
Materials
- Non-pathogenic E. coli cloning strains
- Cloning vectors
- Restriction enzymes and ligase
- Selective media
Core reading
- Green MR, Sambrook J. Molecular Cloning: A Laboratory Manual, 4th edition. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 2012.
- Cohen SN, Chang ACY, Boyer HW, Helling RB (1973). Construction of biologically functional bacterial plasmids in vitro. PNAS 70:3240–3244.
Duration, format and fees
- Next cohort
- Dates are sent with your admission offer
- Timetable
- Weekdays, 9:30 to 16:30, at our laboratory
- Payment
- Secure online payment link with your admission offer (UPI, cards, net banking). Instalments on request for fees above ₹15,000.
- Refunds
- See the refund and cancellation policy.
Instructor
The instructor for each cohort is named in your admission offer and on this page when the cohort is announced. Vedicgen instructors are selected for hands-on laboratory experience in the subject they teach, and every course is reviewed by a second subject expert.
Questions about who teaches a cohort? [email protected]
Certificate
Learners who complete the course and pass its practical assessment receive a Vedicgen certificate of completion for Gene Cloning & Recombinant DNA Technology, issued by Vivofold, stating the bench hours and techniques performed. Each certificate has a unique ID and QR code that anyone can check.
Apply for Gene Cloning & Recombinant DNA Technology
Apply
Send the form below. It takes about five minutes.
Review
An adviser confirms your fit and format within two working days.
Offer
You receive dates, timetable and a secure payment link.
Onboard
Safety briefing, lab address and joining instructions.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Day one starts with a safety induction covering personal protective equipment, safe handling of reagents and biological material, spill response and waste segregation. All practicals use non-pathogenic material (Risk Group 1 organisms, established cell lines or synthetic templates) and are supervised throughout.
All reagents, kits, consumables, personal protective equipment, the lab manual and the certificate. Travel, accommodation and meals are not included. The laboratory address and joining instructions are sent with your admission letter.
Bench courses run in small groups so that every participant performs every practical personally, with an instructor-to-participant ratio that allows close supervision at the bench.
Yes. Learners who complete the course and pass its assessment receive a Vedicgen certificate of completion, issued by Vivofold. Every certificate carries a unique ID and a QR code that anyone, including an employer or admissions office, can check on the certificate verification page.
Apply with the form on this page. Live and in-person cohorts run through the year; the dates, timetable and joining details of the next cohort are sent with your admission offer and listed on this page once announced. Self-paced enrolment opens as soon as your application is accepted.
Yes. No course runs longer than four weeks, and the length is customisable: choose the standard schedule, an intensive one- to two-week schedule, weekends only, or a custom timetable. Pick your preference on the application form; colleges and teams can book their own dates.
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