title: Quantification of GABA(A) receptor subunit mRNAs by non-radioisotopic competitive RT-PCR utilizing plate-based EIA methodology.
abstract: We developed a non-radioisotopic quantitative competitive RT-PCR method for the measurement of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) type A receptor subunit mRNA levels. The specificity of the method was optimized by the use of four subunit-specific oligonucleotides in the sequential steps: reverse transcription, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and detection. The biotinylated PCR products were bound on streptavidin-coated microtiter plates allowing detection of the products using dinitrophenyl (DNP)-labeled probes and anti-DNP alkaline phosphatase conjugate. The method was set up for the six major cerebellar GABA(A) receptor subunits: alpha1; alpha6; beta2; beta3; gamma2 and delta. The method is quantitative and rapid. With a large dynamic range from 10 fg to 1 ng of subunit mRNA, the accuracy was 12 and 19% (intra- and interassay coefficients of variation, respectively), which might be improved by using a smaller range of standards. The use of a double logarithmic standard curve [log (standard to competitor signal) vs. log (standard mRNA originally present)] requires only one reaction from each sample, allowing the analysis of a large number of samples in one experiment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacology, University of Turku, Finland.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Uusi-Oukari
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kleinz
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mäkelä
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lüddens
authors.forename: E R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Korpi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000378:metabolism; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D011963:Receptors, GABA-A / Q000378:metabolism*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D012333:RNA, Messenger; D011963:Receptors, GABA-A