RNA Electrophoresis

Gel electrophoresis of RNA under nondenaturing conditions maintains the secondary structure of RNA molecules. Agarose is generally preferred to acrylamide because it has lower toxicity and, at the concentrations needed to resolve typical RNA molecules, it is easier to handle. We offer convenient reagents for nondenaturing agarose gel electrophoresis, including hassle-free precast E-Gel™ agarose gels and UltraPure™ reagents to pour your own agarose gels.  

Products for Nondenaturing RNA Electrophoresis:

• E-Gel™ Precast Agarose Gel Electrophoresis System
• RNA Ladders
• UltraPure™ Agarose and Reagents
• Thermo Scientific™ RNA Electrophoresis

To accurately determine the molecular weight of RNA molecules, it is essential to run RNA gels using denaturing conditions. Since northern blots typically seek to characterize RNA molecules based on their size, denaturing electrophoresis is commonly used prior to RNA analysis by northern blotting.. Denaturing conditions disrupt hydrogen bonding so that RNA runs without secondary structure, as single-stranded molecules. There are a number of denaturing agents available, including glyoxal, formamide, and methyl mercury. The disadvantage of these compounds is that they are toxic and therefore should be treated with caution.

Traditionally, formaldehyde has been used as a denaturant for RNA electrophoresis. The NorthernMax™ Kit contains a complete set of RNase-free reagents for running formaldehyde-containing agarose gels. These gels must be poured and run in a fume hood. With the NorthernMax™-Gly Kit, RNA samples are denatured in glyoxal/DMSO loading buffer prior to electrophoresis and run in a formaldehyde-free agarose gel.

For determination of RNA size, a wide range of RNA ladders are available for accurate size and mass estimations, including the Millennium™ Markers.

• Learn more aboutRNA Ladders

For Research Use Only. Not for human or animal therapeutic or diagnostic use.