Abstract
Plant viruses are strong inducers as well as targets of RNA silencing. In plants RNA silencing acts as a natural defense mechanism against viral infection and is associated with accumulation of virus-specific small interfering RNAs (siRNAs). The continuing discoveries, increasing awareness and interest in the regulatory roles of non-coding small RNAs have raised the need for methods that can reliably detect and quantitate the expression levels of small RNAs. Northern blot analysis of small RNAs involving the separation of RNA molecules using polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) has remained a popular and valuable analytical method to validate small RNAs. Northern blot analysis consist of resolving RNAs by gel electrophoresis, followed by transferring and fixing to nylon membranes as well as detecting by hybridization using radioactive probes. The following protocol provides a method for isolation and detection of small RNAs from virus-infected plants and was successfully used in Panwar et al. (2013a), Panwar et al. (2013b).
Keywords: RNA Silencing, SiRNA Detection, Northern Blotting, Virus-Induced Gene Silencing, Host-Induced Gene Silencing
Materials and Reagents
Equipment
Procedure
Recipes
Acknowledgments
This protocol was adapted from the protocol described by Pall and Hamilton (2008). We are grateful for discussions with and technical advice from Mrs. Melanie Walker and Dr. Hélène Sanfaҫon.
References
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