A small-scale procedure for the rapid isolation of plant RNAs.

The analysis of RNA levels in large numbers of (transgenic) plants is elaborate and time consuming. In the conventional set up (ref.), RNA is prepared from whole leaves of mature plants by grinding in a mortar in relatively large volumes. This increases the risk of RNase contamination and the number of samples that can be handled is limited. We adapted this method to allow the rapid isolation of total RNA from as little as 100 mg of leaf material. All steps are performed in eppendorf tubes so many samples can be handled simultaneously.