Recovery of biologically functional messenger RNA from agarose gels by passive elution

A general method for isolating biologically active messenger RNA (mRNA) from agarose gels is reported. Purified cellular RNA is resolved by preparative agarose gel electrophoresis and recovered in high yields (80%) by passive diffusion. Polyadenylated mRNA isolated from the eluted RNA is functionally intact based on the ability of the RNA to serve as a template in cell-free translation systems and complementary DNA synthesis reactions. The entire procedure is simple and rapid. A substantial purification of the mRNAs coding for skeletal muscle myosin heavy chain, light chain subunits and carbonic anhydrase III has been achieved employing this method.