Strategies for cloning unknown cellular flanking DNA sequences from foreign integrants

Many virus and transposon DNAs can integrate into the host genome. In this review, techniques, including inverse polymerase chain reaction (IPCR), novel Alu-PCR and vectorette- or splinkerette-PCR are introduced as possible strategies for cloning flanking DNA regions of the integrants. Targeted gene-walking PCR, restriction-site PCR, capture PCR, and panhandle PCR and boomerang DNA amplification are also described. The principles, advantages and limitations of each approach are discussed.