Abstract:
Epidermal RNA samples from FVB/N mice treated with PAH standards and
environmental PAH mixtures were harvested and purified using Trizol extraction and
RNeasy mini prep kit purification. Epidermal RNA integrity was low (RIN mean 3.5),
indicating significant RNA degradation and the need to modify handling, collection, and
processing of skin to limit degradation. Potential sources of RNA degrdation include
RNase activity, both endogenous and exogenous, thermal degradation during heat-induced
epidermal-dermal seperation, and contamination of stock solutions. Testing of
the modified method produced dermal RNA samples with acceptable RIN integrity levels
(RIN mean 7.6). Variations of the modified method were performed and compared to
one another for method optimization.
