Measurement of Poly A Tail Length from Drosophila Larva Brain and Cell Line

Polyadenylation is a post-transcription modification. This add poly-A tails to the three-prime end of mRNA molecules. Dysregulation of polyadenylation has been associated with abnormal gene expression and various diseases, including neurological disorders.

Our method provides a cost-effective, high-resolution analysis for measuring poly-A lengths. High-throughput methods for poly-A tail analysis, like next generation sequencing, and a high-throughput sequencing provides high-content information. However, analyzing rare transcripts can be extremely challenging with these methods.

PCR-based methods are usually low-throughput. However, they can be easily used to analyze a small number of transcripts. The GI-tailing method is one of them.

With this method, we discovered that Dscam mRNAs contain short poly-A tails. Dscam is a neuronal cell adhesion molecule. It is involved in many important neurodevelopmental processes.

Because Dscam mRNA contains short poly-A tails unlike most mRNAs, Dscam mRNA translation is under unique gene regulation, which is one of the questions we are trying to answer.