Method to identify the expression profile of antisense gene transcripts

描述(申请人提供)：越来越多的真核基因被发现具有自然产生的反义转录本。在人类中，反义转录本的数量估计至少有1600个，有几个理由表明实际数量要高得多。反义基因转录本似乎以这样或那样的方式与其正义转录本的表达调控有关，它们与遗传印记和疾病有关。反义转录本的大部分知识来源于对表达序列标签和全长转录本的电子分析。一种便于直接进行反义实验分析的方法将是非常有价值的。我们建议开发一种高通量鉴定和分析反义转录本的方法，就像基因表达微阵列用于研究正常(正义)RNA的表达一样。事实上，我们的方法是用目前可用的基因表达微阵列来识别反义转录本。我们设想将两种研究产品商业化。首先是用于鉴定和研究自然产生的反义转录本的双重RNA扩增试剂盒，其次是用于研究正义转录本的改进的常规RNA扩增试剂盒，这将使对RNA经常降解的临床样本的基因表达分析成为可能。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): An increasing number of eukaryotic genes are being found to have naturally occurring antisense transcripts. In humans the number of antisense transcripts is estimated to be at least 1,600 and there are several reasons to suggest that the actual number is very much higher. Antisense gene transcripts appear to be associated in one way or another with regulation of expression of their sense transcripts and they have been linked to genetic imprinting and disease. Most of the knowledge of antisense transcripts is derived from in silico analysis of expressed sequence tags and full length transcripts. A method to facilitate direct experimental analysis of antisense would be highly valuable. We propose to develop a method for identification and expression analysis of antisense transcripts in a high throughput manner in the same way as gene expression microarrays are used to study expression of normal (sense) RNA. In fact, our method is designed to identify antisense transcripts with currently available gene expression microarrays. We envision the commercialization of two research products. First a dual RNA amplification kit to identify and study naturally occurring antisense transcripts, and second an improved conventional RNA amplification kit to study sense transcripts which will enable the gene expression analysis of clinical samples from which the RNA is frequently degraded.