- Sherif Hanafy: Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2N8, Canada.
OBJECTIVE AND METHOD: We determined whether adjuvant arthritis (AA) affects expression of three housekeeping (HK) genes, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate-dehydrogenase (GAPDH), β-actin and 18s ribosomal RNA (18s rRNA) in organs of Sprague-Dawley rats using the real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).
RESULTS: Expression of 18s rRNA was unaffected by AA whereas that of β-actin was reduced by 52, 62 and 81% in the liver, kidney and intestine, respectively, but not in the heart. AA significantly reduced GAPDH expression in the intestine.
CONCLUSION: For reliable results, the HK gene must be carefully selected.