Construction of Human Gene Libraries from Small Amounts cf Peripheral Blood: Analysis of β-Like Globin Genes

Abstract
A rapid procedure for constructing cloned human genomic libraries from small amounts of peripheral blood is described. High MW DNA is isolated from 5-20 ml peripheral blood, partially cleaved with Eco R1, and 8-22 kb [kilobase] fragments are cloned using bacteriophage Charon 4A and a suitable Escherichia coli host. Several non-.alpha. globin clones were isolated and characterized from a Kurdish Jew with homozygous .beta. thalassemia. The ability to isolate suitable amounts of high MW DNA from peripheral blood provides a relatively simple means of constructing human gene libraries representing a variety of Hb disorders.