MicroRNA profiling in plasma or serum using quantitative RT-PCR.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are important cellular modulators that regulate gene expression at the posttranscriptional level. Circulating miRNAs present in human plasma or serum have recently become an emerging field in biomedical research, mostly due to its potential applications in the diagnosis and prognosis of several diseases. Although miRNA profiling in biofluids holds great promise, there are several challenges to overcome. Here, we present an experimental procedure for profiling miRNA in plasma or serum with high sensitivity and specificity using qRT-PCR. This method is also suitable for studying miRNAs in other body fluids or clinical samples that also contain low amounts of RNA.