Jumping libraries and linking libraries: the next generation of molecular tools in mammalian genetics

Abstract New types of clone libraries (chromosome jumping libraries and linking libraries) are being developed to cope with the large physical distances separating markers and genes in mammalian genomes. Some aspects of the technology are in the early stages of development, and a number of problems remain to be overcome. Nevertheless, we have successfully constructed a number of different jumping and linking libraries from the human and mouse genomes, and we are beginning to use these long-range cloning and mapping techniques for many applications in mammalian genetics.