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Updated: May 21, 2026
13:03
Robust DNA Isolation and High-throughput Sequencing Library Construction for Herbarium Specimens
Published on: March 8, 2018
Herbaria provide a valuable resource for obtaining informative mRNA
Alexa S Tyszka1, Khong-Sam Chia2, Eric C Bretz1
1Department of Biological Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60607, USA.
Genome Research
|May 19, 2026
Summary
Archival RNA from herbarium specimens is suitable for transcriptomics, enabling the study of rare and extinct plants. This finding opens new avenues for molecular exploration of historical botanical collections.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Botany
- Genomics
Background:
- DNA analysis is common in museum collections, but archival RNA utility is unexplored.
- RNA's instability limits its use in transcriptomics from historical specimens.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the suitability of archival RNA from herbarium specimens for transcriptomics.
- To challenge the assumption that herbaria are unusable for transcriptomic studies.
Main Methods:
- RNA extraction from fresh-collected, silica-dried, and archival herbarium specimens.
- Transcriptome assembly and comparison across different specimen types.
- Functional validation of a plant immune receptor from archival mRNA.
Main Results:
- Herbarium-derived RNA is suitable for transcriptomic analysis.
- Archival mRNA can be used to synthesize functional proteins, demonstrated by validating a plant immune receptor from a 1956 specimen.
- Transcriptomes can be successfully assembled from archival specimens.
Conclusions:
- Herbarium specimens are a valuable, largely untapped resource for transcriptomics.
- Archival RNA analysis can provide insights into rare and extinct plant species.
- This research expands the potential of historical botanical collections for molecular research.
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