In Vitro Analysis of Hypertensive Signal Transduction

2.3 Isolation of RNA from Mammalian Cells or Tissues Using TRIZOL Reagent

2.4 Precautions for Preventing RNase Contamination

6. 3 M sodium acetate (NaOAc): Sigma-Aldrich, P/NS7899. 7. Chloroform. 8. Isopropyl alcohol. 9. 75 % ethanol (in DEPC-treated water). 10. RNase-free water. 11. Ethidium bromide: Sigma-Aldrich, P/N E8751. 12. 1 N NaOH. 13. 1 N HCl. 14. Sterile, RNase-free, microcentrifuge vials, 1.5 mL: USA

Scientific, P/N 1415-2600 (or equivalent). 15. Micropipettors, (P-2, P-20, P-200, P-1000): Rainin Pipetman or equivalent. 16. Sterile barrier, RNase-free pipette tips. (Tips must be pointed, not rounded, for efficient use with the probe arrays.) Beveled pipette tips may cause damage to the array septa and cause leakage. 17. Mini agarose gel electrophoresis unit with appropriate buffers. 18. UV spectrophotometer or Nanodrop or Bioanalyzer. 19. Nonstick RNase-free microcentrifuge tubes, 0.5 mL and 1.5 mL: Ambion, P/N12350 and P/N 12450, respectively.

TRIZOL Reagent is a ready-to-use reagent for the isolation of total RNA from cells and tissues (rat kidney or heart). This technique performs well with small quantities of tissue (50–100 mg) and cells (5 × 106), and large quantities of tissue (≥1 g) and cells (>107), of animal origin. The simplicity of the TRIZOL Reagent method allows simultaneous processing of a large number of samples. The entire procedure can be completed in 1 h.

RNases can be introduced accidentally into the RNA preparation at any point in the isolation procedure through improper technique. Because RNase activity is difficult to inhibit, it is essential to prevent its introduction. The following guidelines should be observed when working with RNA. 1. Always wear disposable gloves. Skin often contains bacteria and molds that can contaminate an RNA preparation and be a source of RNases. Practice good microbiological technique to prevent microbial contamination. 2. Use sterile, disposable plasticware and automatic pipettes reserved for RNA work to prevent cross-contamination with

RNases from shared equipment. For example, a laboratory that is using RNA probes will likely be using RNase A or T1 to reduce background on filters, and any nondisposable items (such as automatic pipettes) can be rich sources of RNases. 3. In the presence of TRIZOL Reagent, RNA is protected from

RNase contamination. Downstream sample handling requires

2.5 Homogenization

2.5.1 Tissues

2.6 Phase Separation

2.7 RNA Precipitation

2.8 RNA Wash

2.9 Redissolving the RNA

that nondisposable glassware or plasticware be RNase-free. Glass items can be baked at 150 °C for 4 h, and plastic items can be soaked for 10 min in 0.5 M NaOH, rinsed thoroughly with water, and autoclaved.

Homogenize tissue samples in 1 mL of TRIZOL Reagent per 50–100 mg of tissue (rat kidney or heart) using a glass-Teflon® or power homogenizer (Polytron, or Tekmar’s TISSUMIZER® or equivalent). The sample volume should not exceed 10 % of the volume of TRIZOL Reagent used for homogenization. As a rule, make sure that the solution remains pink in color and does not turn brown.

Following homogenization, remove insoluble material from the homogenate by centrifugation at 12,000 × g for 10 min at 2–8 °C. The resulting pellet contains extracellular membranes, polysaccharides, and high molecular weight DNA, while the supernate contains RNA.

Incubate the homogenized samples for 5 min at 15–30 °C to permit the complete dissociation of nucleoprotein complexes. Add 0.2 mL of chloroform per 1 mL of TRIZOL Reagent. Cap sample tubes securely. Shake tubes vigorously by hand for 15 s and incubate them at 15–30 °C for 2–3 min. Centrifuge the samples at no more than 12,000 × g for 15 min at 2–8 °C. Following centrifugation, the mixture separates into a lower red, phenol-chloroform phase, an interphase, and a colorless upper aqueous phase. RNA remains exclusively in the aqueous phase. The volume of the aqueous phase is about 60 % of the volume of TRIZOL Reagent used for homogenization.

Transfer the aqueous phase to a fresh tube and precipitate the RNA from the aqueous phase by mixing with isopropyl alcohol. Use 0.5 mL of isopropyl alcohol per 1 mL of TRIZOL Reagent used for the initial homogenization. Incubate samples at 15–30 °C for 10 min and centrifuge at no more than 12,000 × g for 10 min at 2–8 °C. The RNA precipitate, often invisible before centrifugation, forms a gel-like pellet on the side and bottom of the tube.

Remove the supernate. Wash the RNA pellet once with 75% ethanol, adding at least 1 mL of 75% ethanol per 1 mL of TRIZOL Reagent used for the initial homogenization. Mix the sample by vortexing and centrifuge at no more than 7500×g for 5 min at 2–8 °C.

At the end of the procedure, briefly dry the RNA pellet (air-dry or vacuum-dry for 5–10 min). Do not dry the RNA by centrifugation under vacuum. It is important not to let the RNA pellet dry completely as this will greatly decrease its solubility. Partially dissolved RNA samples have an A260/280 ratio < 1.6. Dissolve RNA in RNase-free water incubating for 10 min at 55–60 °C.

2.10 Precipitation of RNA

2.11 Precipitation Procedure

2.12 Quantification of RNA

It is not necessary to precipitate total RNA following isolation or cleanup with the RNeasy Mini Kit. Adjust elution volumes from the RNeasy column to prepare for cDNA synthesis based upon expected RNA yields from your experiment. Ethanol precipitation is required following TRIZOL or QIAzol reagent isolation and hot phenol extraction methods.

1. Add 1/10 volume 3 M NaOAc, pH 5.2, and 2.5 volumes ethanol. 2. Mix and incubate at −20 °C for at least 1 h. 3. Centrifuge at ≥ 12,000 × g in a microcentrifuge for 20 min at 4 °C. 4. Wash pellet twice with 80 % ethanol. 5. Air-dry pellet. Check for dryness before proceeding. 6. Resuspend pellet in DEPC-treated H2O.

The appropriate volume for resuspension depends on the expected yield and the amount of RNA required for the cDNA synthesis. Please read ahead to the cDNA synthesis protocol in order to determine the appropriate resuspension volume at this step.

Important: If going directly from TRIZOL-isolated total RNA to cDNA synthesis, it is beneficial to perform a second cleanup on the total RNA before starting. After the ethanol precipitation step in the TRIZOL extraction procedure, perform a cleanup using the QIAGEN RNeasy Mini Kit. Much better yields of labeled cRNA are obtained from the in vitro transcription-labeling reaction when this second cleanup is performed.

Quantify the RNA yield by a spectrophotometric method using the convention that one absorbance unit at 260 nm equals 40 μg/ mL RNA.

1. The absorbance should be checked at 260 and 280 nm for determination of sample concentration and purity. 2. The A260/A280 ratio should be close to 2.0 for pure RNA (ratios between 1.9 and 2.1 are acceptable; refer to Fig. 1 for an example).

Using the RNA isolated, there are several choices for proceeding with the microarray experiment. The choices are:

1. Submit the isolated RNA for conversion to cDNA and hybridization by a commercial vendor or core facility for microarrays. To do so, document the spectrophotometric quality check information and ship the RNA on dry ice. 2. Convert the RNA to cDNA in the laboratory for hybridization experiments.