pIRESneo3 contains the internal ribosome entry site (IRES) of the encephalomyocarditis virus (ECMV), which permits the translation of two open reading frames from one messenger RNA (1–3). After selection with G418, nearly all surviving colonies will stably express the gene of interest, thus decreasing the need to screen large numbers of colonies to find functional clones. To select for cells that express high levels of the gene of interest, the selective pressure for antibiotic resistance was increased by shifting the neomycin phosphotransferase gene downstream to a less optimal position for translation as directed by the IRES sequence (1). By decreasing the level of expression of the antibiotic resistance marker, the selective pressure on the entire expression cassette is increased, resulting in the selection of cells that express the entire transcript, including the gene of interest, at high levels.