Identification of differential gene expression by high throughput analysis

High throughput analysis of differential gene expression is a powerful tool that can be applied to many areas in molecular cell biology, including differentiation, development, physiology, and pharmacology. In recent years, a variety of techniques have been developed to analyze differential gene expression, including comparative expressed sequence tag sequencing, differential display, representational difference analysis, cDNA or oligonucleotide arrays, and serial analysis of gene expression. This review explains the technologies, their scopes, impact on science, as well as their costs and possible limitations. The application of differential display is presented as a tool to identify genes induced by darkness or yellowing process in rice leaves.