ANALYTICAL AND PREPARATIVE ELECTROPHORESIS OF RNA IN AGAROSE-UREA

Agarose-6 m urea gels at neutral pH stained with ethidium bromide give high resolution of complex mixtures of RNA molecules. These RNA species can be readily distinguished from contaminating DNA, which does not have to be purified away from the RNA, and electrophoresis can be carried out using phenol-saturated deproteinated cellular extracts without loss of resolution. Individual RNA species can be extracted from the gels by freezing, thawing, and centrifugation; the RNA may then be purified by phenol extraction and ethanol precipitation. Such purified RNA is an excellent substrate for RNA-DNA hybridization and cell-free translation. In addition, the RNA can be easily transferred with high resolution from the agarose-6 m urea gels to diazobenzyloxymethyl paper for subsequent hybridization to labeled DNA. © 1979.