RNA-Seq of Zea mays: leaves under Drought stress
otal RNA was extracted from maize (Zea mays B73) leaves using [TRIzol reagent / RNAprep Pure Kit]. RNA integrity was assessed using [Agilent 2100 Bioanalyzer], and samples with RIN > [8.0] were used for library construction. Sequencing libraries were generated using [NEBNext Ultra II RNA Library Prep Kit] following manufacturer's recommendations. Briefly, mRNA was purified from total RNA using poly-T oligo-attached magnetic beads. Fragmentation was carried out using divalent cations under elevated temperature. First-strand cDNA was synthesized using random hexamers, followed by second-strand synthesis. The cDNA fragments were end-repaired, A-tailed, and ligated with Illumina adapters. The ligation products were amplified by PCR, purified, and sequenced on an [Illumina NovaSeq 6000] platform.