Minigene
A minigene is a simplified gene construct used to study RNA splicing and gene expression in a controlled cellular environment. It typically comprises a small genomic fragment of interest—usually one or a few exons with surrounding intronic sequences—placed within an expression vector under the control of a promoter. The transcript produced by the host cell is spliced, and the resulting RNA products are analyzed by techniques such as RT-PCR, sequencing, or reporter readouts to assess splicing outcomes. Many minigenes also include a reporter gene or selectable marker to facilitate quantification of expression.
Construction and use: A minigene is designed to isolate the splicing event under study from other regulatory
Applications and limitations: Minigene assays are used to characterize splicing defects associated with genetic variants, to