Need help? Call us: +1 416-549-8100 or customerservice@mbpinc.net

Quick Order Contact Us About Us Blogs Sign In

Product Filters

Plant RNA Extraction Kits for Polyphenol-Rich Tissue

Plant RNA extraction kits isolate total RNA, including small RNAs ≥17 nt, from leaves, stems, roots, flowers, fruit, and seeds—overcoming the polyphenols, polysaccharides, and high RNase activity that cause standard mammalian RNA kits to fail on plant tissue. Kits use β-mercaptoethanol- or PVP-containing lysis buffers for oxidation protection and dual-column or inhibitor-removal steps for high-purity RNA.

MBP carries Zymo Research Quick-RNA Plant Miniprep and Direct-zol formats validated for Arabidopsis, rice, maize, and CTAB-compatible high-polyphenol species, available to registered vendors at Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Vanderbilt University, and MD Anderson Cancer Center. Request a quote by contacting customerservice@mbpinc.net.

Plant

Per Page:

Sort By:

HPPP-R00

Magbio HighPrep Plant RNA Plus Kit

List Price:

USD35.74 - USD1,533.96

Online Price:

USD25.53 - USD1,095.69

Your Price:

ZYM-R2024

Quick-RNA™ Plant Miniprep Kit (50 Preps.)

List Price:

USD618.54

Online Price:

USD441.82

Your Price:

Showing 1 to 2 of 2 results

What are Plant RNA Extraction Kits?

Plant RNA extraction kits isolate total RNA from leaves, stems, roots, flowers, fruit, seeds, and bark by addressing the tissue-specific inhibitors that cause standard mammalian RNA kits to fail on plant material: polyphenols that oxidize and crosslink RNA, polysaccharides that co-precipitate with nucleic acids, and high RNase activity released during disruption. Dedicated plant kits incorporate beta-mercaptoethanol or PVP in lysis buffers to neutralize polyphenol oxidation, chaotropic guanidinium or CTAB-based lysis for robust RNA release, and inhibitor-removal column steps or wash buffers that clear polysaccharide and pigment carryover before RNA elution. Use a plant-specific RNA kit whenever your starting material is plant tissue - standard mammalian tissue RNA kits produce brown viscous lysates, clogged columns, and low-purity RNA from most plant species.

What you will find:

Mag Beads: for high-throughput, automation-ready isolation of total RNA from complex plant tissues using magnetic bead–based purification.
Spin-column: for rapid isolation of ultra-pure total RNA using silica spin-column technology, without hazardous organic solvents.

How to Choose a Plant RNA Extraction Kit

Low-Polyphenol vs. High-Polyphenol Plant Species

For low-polyphenol species -- Arabidopsis thaliana, tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum), rice, maize, soybean -- guanidinium-based plant RNA kits (Zymo Quick-RNA Plant Miniprep) perform well with standard protocols. For high-polyphenol and high-polysaccharide species -- Pinus, Vitis vinifera, Citrus, Coffea, Theobroma, orchids, and tropical fruits - use CTAB-based lysis (2% CTAB, 2% PVP-40, 0.2% beta-mercaptoethanol) followed by column purification with Zymo Direct-zol RNA Miniprep Plus, which is confirmed compatible with CTAB-extracted plant samples.

Spin-Column vs. Magnetic Bead Format

Spin-column plant RNA kits are the standard for 1-24 samples per run. Magnetic bead plant RNA formats are emerging for high-throughput phenotyping applications where 96+ plant samples are processed per day in plant breeding or stress response screens; they require a magnet plate or automation platform. For routine lab use, the spin-column format provides sufficient throughput.

Small RNA Retention

Confirm the kit retains small RNAs >=17 nt if your study includes plant miRNAs, ta-siRNAs, or siRNAs. The Zymo Quick-RNA Plant Miniprep uses a Zymo-Spin IIC column that captures total RNA, including small RNAs alongside mRNA. Kits using larger-pore silica membranes that exclude small RNAs are not appropriate for plant small RNA profiling.

Inhibitor Removal Filtration

The Zymo Quick-RNA Plant Kit includes optional Zymo-Spin III-HRC Spin Filters for an additional inhibitor removal step on the eluted RNA; run this step when A260/A230 ratios are below 1.5 or when RT-qPCR shows inhibition. This step reduces yield slightly but is essential for reliable quantification from high-inhibitor plant tissues.

Input Mass

Most plant RNA kits process 50-100 mg of fresh tissue per extraction. For seeds, bark, or woody stems, reduce input to 10-30 mg and increase grinding time in liquid nitrogen to ensure complete disruption. Overloading the column with high-polysaccharide tissue causes column clogging and yield reduction.

Specifications Context

Target quality metrics for plant RNA: A260/A280 >= 1.8-2.0, A260/A230 >= 1.5 (>=1.8 preferred; lower values indicate polysaccharide carryover), and RIN >= 7 for RNA-seq. The Zymo Quick-RNA Plant Miniprep Kit is validated for leaves, stems, buds, flowers, fruit, and seeds with yields up to 50 ug total RNA per extraction. Plant RNA-seq is a routine tool in crop improvement, disease resistance, and climate stress research; Arabidopsis thaliana, Oryza sativa (rice), and Zea mays (maize) are the most commonly processed species in published RNA-seq studies from academic plant biology laboratories at institutions including the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Vanderbilt University. Liquid nitrogen grinding within 60 seconds of tissue harvest is the single most important step for preserving RNA integrity in plant samples.

Contact the MBP team for ordering assistance, bulk pricing, or protocol guidance on selecting the right kit for your sample type.

FAQ

Plant RNA extraction kits isolate total RNA from fresh, frozen, or dried plant tissue — leaves, stems, roots, flowers, seeds, fruit, and bark — using lysis buffers formulated to overcome the specific inhibitors present in plant matrices: polyphenols that oxidize and bind RNA, polysaccharides that co-precipitate with RNA and inhibit enzymes, and high RNase activity from cytoplasmic release during disruption. Dedicated plant RNA kits incorporate antioxidants, CTAB or guanidinium-based chaotropes, and inhibitor-removal columns for high-purity RNA.

Plant cells contain high concentrations of polyphenols (tannins, lignins, flavonoids) and polysaccharides (starch, pectin, cellulose-associated compounds) that co-extract with RNA under standard guanidinium conditions. Polyphenols oxidize and covalently bind RNA, while polysaccharides precipitate with RNA and block silica column flow, producing viscous brown lysates and low-purity RNA. Plant-specific kits address these issues with β-mercaptoethanol or PVP (polyvinylpyrrolidone) in lysis buffers to protect RNA from oxidation, plus specialized inhibitor-removal wash steps.

MBP carries the Zymo Research Quick-RNA Plant Miniprep Kit, which uses a specially formulated RNA Lysis Buffer with a dual-column architecture — Zymo-Spin IIICG column for DNA elimination and Zymo-Spin IIC column for RNA binding — and optional Zymo-Spin III-HRC Spin Filters for inhibitor removal. It is validated for leaves, stems, buds, flowers, fruit, and seeds, yielding up to 50 µg total RNA including small RNAs. Zymo Direct-zol kits are also compatible with CTAB-based plant lysis for polyphenol-rich species.

The Zymo Quick-RNA Plant Miniprep Kit yields up to 50 µg total RNA per extraction from fresh plant tissue. Yield varies substantially by tissue type: high-water-content leaf tissue (Arabidopsis thaliana, tobacco) typically yields 10–50 µg from 50–100 mg; high-starch or high-polyphenol tissues (woody stems, fruit, bark) yield 1–10 µg due to inhibitor competition for column binding capacity. RNA concentration in the eluate ranges from 50–500 ng/µl in a standard 50–100 µl elution.

Yes. The Zymo Quick-RNA Plant Miniprep Kit uses a Zymo-Spin IIC column that binds total RNA, including small RNAs ≥17 nt, co-purifying miRNAs, siRNAs, and ta-siRNAs alongside mRNA and rRNA from the same plant tissue extraction. Plant small RNAs — including miR156, miR166, miR319, and miR399 — are key regulators of development, stress responses, and nutrient homeostasis and are frequently profiled alongside mRNA in plant transcriptomic studies.

High-polyphenol and high-polysaccharide plants present the greatest challenge: Pinus (pine), Vitis (grapevine), Citrus, Coffea (coffee), Theobroma (cacao), orchids, and many tropical fruit species. For these, CTAB-based lysis with 2% CTAB, 2% PVP, and 0.2% β-mercaptoethanol followed by Direct-zol column purification is more effective than guanidinium-only lysis. The Zymo Direct-zol RNA Miniprep Plus kit is confirmed compatible with CTAB-extracted plant samples from Pinus and Geranium.

Yes, for most plant tissues. Plant cell walls must be mechanically disrupted before lysis; frozen tissue is pulverized in liquid nitrogen with a pre-chilled mortar and pestle or bead mill to a fine powder before adding lysis buffer. Working quickly on dry ice prevents RNA degradation from RNase activity, which resumes within seconds of tissue thawing. For fibrous tissues (stems, woody roots), liquid nitrogen grinding is mandatory; soft tissues (leaves) can be disrupted by bead beating without prior freezing when immediately added to lysis buffer.

Plant RNA is used for RT-qPCR quantification of stress-response genes, RNA-seq transcriptomic profiling of development, pathogen response, and abiotic stress, small RNA sequencing (miRNA-seq, siRNA profiling), Northern blotting, and gene silencing validation. A260/A280 ≥ 2.0 (plant RNA typically has slightly higher ratios than mammalian RNA due to low protein content) and RIN ≥ 7 are standard quality benchmarks before proceeding to RNA-seq library preparation from plant tissue.

We provide the highest quality of products and anytime customer service.

Featured Categories

Useful Links

+1 416-549-8100

customerservice@mbpinc.net

online payment

fast delivery

technical support

24/7 support