Small RNA Sample Prep Kit FAQs

Yes. However, we have seen high sample variability using some commercially available small RNA spin column purification methods, and validation of any purification method may be necessary. If purified small RNA is used as starting material, 10–50 ng should be used.

The protocol was optimized using 1 μg total RNA.

Reads longer than the small RNA molecule will sequence into the adapter. For this reason, we recommend sequencing for only enough cycles to cover the small RNAs of interest, or trimming the later cycles before aligning. The sequence that would need to be trimmed from the 3' end is given here for reference.

TGGAATTCTCGGGTGCCAAGGAACTCCAGTCACnnnnnnATCTCGTATGCCGTCTTCTGCTTG

This is the reverse complement of the index-specific primer sequence given in the Illumina Adapter Sequences Document, with the index sequence shown as nnnnnn.

As with any molecular biology techniques, a change in protocol will give a change in absolute results. We do not recommend comparing absolute counts (or counts normalized to total counts) between different preparation protocols. However, comparison of fold change between the two protocols should yield good correlation.