Quality control of RNA
RNA Quality Control This protocol will assist you in performing RNA quality control for a variet of purposes; Microarray, real-time and Northern analysis.
Checking RNA/cRNA samples on a nanodrop Spec
- Check concentration, A260/A280, A260/A230 on Nanodrop Spectrophotometer.
- Maintain the A260/A280 ratio close to 2.0 for pure RNA (ratios between 1.9 and 2.1 are acceptable).
- For Affymetrix labeling reactions; concentrations of cRNA are generally around 1000-1500ng/µl for a 40µl IVT reaction using 20µl of cDNA template.
Checking RNA/cRNA samples on an Agilent Bioanalyzer
Agilent BioAnalyzer Gel electrophoresis of the RNA is done to estimate the quality of the RNA. The bioanalyzer software produces a RIN (RNA integrity number) which gives a measure of sample quality that is not subjective. However it needs to be used with some caution and is not as useful as it sounds.
RNA Image galleries
The following are examples of typical Human RNA examined on an Agilent 2100 BioAnalyser. RNA electropherograms have different profiles depending on species, tissue and starting material quality.
Human RNA good quality
Mouse total RNA undegraded, RIN 10
Mouse total RNA slightly degraded, RIN 9.4
Arabidopsis RNA good quality
Arabidopsis single cell aRNA
Barley RNA good quality
Wheat RNA good quality
cRNA Image galleries
The following are examples of typical cRNA products examined on an Agilent 2100 BioAnalyser. cRNA electropherograms have different profiles depending on species and starting material quality.
Affymetrix One cycle Human cRNA good quality
Affymetrix Two cycle Human cRNA good quality
Affymetrix one cycle Arabidopsis cRNA good quality
Affymetrix one cycle Arabidopsis single cell aRNA cRNA
Affymetrix one cycle Barley cRNA good quality
Affymetrix one cycle Wheat cRNA good quality
Affymetrix one cycle Wheat cRNA poor quality