The first ATG in the exon 1 was inactivated by insertion of a LacZ-Neomycin cassette at the PstI site. LacZ expression was detected in the cranium, brain, vertebral ganglia, gut, and cardiac cushions of E9.5-E11.5 embryos. Endogenous gene inactivation was confirmed by a lack of signal on Northern blots of RNA extracts from brain and lung of homozygote mice. (J:141063)