Why does insect RNA look degraded?
1Department of Anaesthesiology, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland,
New Zealand
2School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
Abstract
The integrity of extracted ribonucleic acid (RNA) is commonly assessed by gel electrophoresis and subsequent analysis of the ribosomal RNA (rRNA) bands. Using the honey bee, Apis mellifera (Hymenoptera: Apidae), as an example, the electrophoretic rRNA profile of insects is explained. This profile differs significantly from the standard benchmark since the 28S rRNA of most insects contains an endogenous “hidden break.” Upon denaturation, the masking hydrogen bonds are disrupted, releasing two similar sized fragments that both migrate closely with 18S rRNA. The resulting rRNA profile thus reflects the endogenous composition of insect rRNA and should not be misinterpreted as degradation.
Keywords: Bioanalyzer, electrophoresis, hidden break, honey bee, ribosomal RNA
Correspondence:
ae.winnebeck@auckland.ac.nz,
bcd.millar@auckland.ac.nz,
c*g.warman@auckland.ac.nz,
*Corresponding author
Associate Editor: Zhijian Jake Tu was editor of this paper.
Received: 14 April 2009 | Accepted: 10 June 2009 | Published: 21 September 2010
Copyright: This is an open access paper. We use the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license that permits unrestricted use, provided that the paper is properly attributed.
ISSN: 1536-2442 | Volume 10, Number 159
Winnebeck EC, Millar CD, Warman GR. 2010. Why does insect RNA look degraded? Journal of Insect Science 10:159, available online: insectscience.org/10.159
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