ISOLATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF A PANEL OF COSMIDS WHICH ALLOWS UNEQUIVOCAL IDENTIFICATION OF CHROMOSOME DELETIONS INVOLVING THE RB1 GENEUSING FLUORESCENCE IN-SITU HYBRIDIZATION

A series of cosmids covering the majority of the RB1 gene have been is olated from a flow sorted human chromosome 13 specific library. Using fluorescence in situ hybridisation these cosmids were all shown to hyb ridise to the 13q14 region but not to chromosomes known to carry subba nd deletions involving the RB1 gene. This panel of cosmids, therefore, can be used objectively for identification of RB1 gene deletions in t umour and normal cells.