A procedure for Northern blot analysis of native RNA

We describe a modification of the Northern technique that allows the detection of RNA either native and/or containing hidden breaks. We found that the highest sensitivity of the hybridization signals was obtained after denaturation of the RNA in the gel prior to its transfer onto a nylon membrane (GeneScreen) followed by uv irradiation. The sensitivity of the method using native RNA was found to be equivalent to that obtained with denatured RNA.