Methodology for isolation of transcriptomics-quality RNA in the absence of RNA stabiliser

The application of omics technologies in epidemiological studies raises certain practical issues of sample suitability, especially in relation to RNA quality for transcriptomics analysis, requiring that care be taken for blood samples to be collected and stored in the presence of RNA preservative. However, millions of human biosamples currently in cold storage in older biobanks were collected and processed by methods that did not anticipate the demands of omics technologies. In the context of the European project EnviroGenomarkers (http://www.envirogenomarkers.net), the utility of blood-derived biobank samples for omics-based analyses was explored (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3620742).

In this context, a video demonstrating methodology for the isolation of transcriptomics-quality RNA from buffy coats stored in biobanks in the absence of RNA stabilizer was published online, and can be accessed by following the link below:

 http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/wp-content/uploads/121/4/ehp.1205657.s002.mp4.