[Crude extraction and activity assay of CEL I]

CEL I, extracted from celery, is the first known eukaryotic nuclease that cleaves DNA with high specificity at sites of base-substitution mismatch and DNA distortion. It is a key enzyme for TILLING research. Here we reported a crude extraction method and activity assay of CEL I. Incision at mismatches of single nucleotide suggested that CEL I can effectively detect DNA at G-->A base substitution and the result can be obtained from an ABI377 Sequencer. Therefore, the extracted enzyme can be used in TILLING.