Exon cloning: immunoenzymatic identification of exons of the chicken lysozyme gene.

A 10-kilobase DNA fragment containing exons 1 and 2 of the chicken lysozyme gene has been randomly cleaved with DNase I. After tailing and cloning into the plasmid pUK230, Lac+ colonies were selected. Colonies harboring expressed fragments of the exons could be detected by an immunoenzymatic assay using antibodies against lysozyme. The smallest fragment coded for 10 amino acids and the largest coded for almost all residues of exon 2. These results suggest that any gene of any genome cloned in this way can be detected if antibodies against the gene product are available.