GSBS Student Publications
Title
Visualization of single RNA transcripts in situ
GSBS Program
Biochemistry & Molecular Pharmacology
UMMS Affiliation
Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences; Department of Physiology
Date
5-9-1998
Document Type
Article
Medical Subject Headings
Actins; Animals; Cell Line; Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate; *In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; Kinetics; Oligonucleotide Probes; RNA Processing, Post-Transcriptional; RNA, Messenger; Rats; *Transcription, Genetic
Disciplines
Life Sciences | Medicine and Health Sciences
Abstract
Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and digital imaging microscopy were modified to allow detection of single RNA molecules. Oligodeoxynucleotide probes were synthesized with five fluorochromes per molecule, and the light emitted by a single probe was calibrated. Points of light in exhaustively deconvolved images of hybridized cells gave fluorescent intensities and distances between probes consistent with single messenger RNA molecules. Analysis of beta-actin transcription sites after serum induction revealed synchronous and cyclical transcription from single genes. The rates of transcription initiation and termination and messenger RNA processing could be determined by positioning probes along the transcription unit. This approach extends the power of FISH to yield quantitative molecular information on a single cell.
Rights and Permissions
Citation: Science. 1998 Apr 24;280(5363):585-90.
Related Resources
Journal Title
Science (New York, N.Y.)
PubMed ID
9554849
Repository Citation
Femino, Andrea M.; Fay, Fredric S.; Fogarty, Kevin E.; and Singer, Robert H., "Visualization of single RNA transcripts in situ" (1998). GSBS Student Publications. 287.
https://escholarship.umassmed.edu/gsbs_sp/287