Cover. Cartoon of the Tailored-SELEX process that allows in vitro selection of aptamers from RNA core libraries with only 10 fixed nucleotides. After the selection step, primer binding sites are added by ligation. They are then successively removed by alkaline fission and in vitro transcription of the PCR product to yield an amplified RNA core library. Following this strategy a biostable aptamer (SpiegelmerTM) directed to the migraine-associated calcitonin gene-related peptide--shown in the background [Breeze et al.(1991) Biochemistry, 30, 575--582]--was identified. Artwork was done by Christian Mihm. For further details see the paper by Vater et al. in this issue [Nucleic Acids Res. (2003) 31, e130].
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