Imaging rRNA methylation in bacteria by MR-FISH

Back to all publications

Publication date
DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-9674-2_7
Reference K.A. Ganzinger, M. Challand, J. Spencer, D. Klenerman and R.T. Ranasinghe: Imaging rRNA methylation in bacteria by MR-FISH In: Methods Mol. Biol., Springer Nature, 2019. - pp. 89-107
Group Physics of Cellular Interactions

Methylation of RNA is normally monitored in purified cell lysates using next-generation sequencing, gel electrophoresis, or mass spectrometry as readouts. These bulk methods require the RNA from ~104 to 107 cells to be pooled to generate sufficient material for analysis. Here we describe a method—methylation-sensitive RNA in situ hybridization (MR-FISH)—that assays rRNA methylation in bacteria on a cell-by-cell basis, using methylation-sensitive hybridization probes and fluorescence microscopy. We outline step-by-step protocols for designing probes, in situ hybridization, and analysis of data using freely available code.