Whole-Body Scanning PCR, a Tool for the Visualization of the In Vivo Biodistribution Pattern of Endogenous and Exogenous Oligonucleotides in Rodents.

Characterizing the in vivo biodistribution pattern and relative expression levels of oligonucleotide-based molecules such as mRNA, miRNA, siRNA, and anti-miRNAs in animal models, could be a helpful first-step in the successful development of therapeutic oligonucleotides. Here we describe a simple procedure called "Whole-Body Scanning PCR" (WBS-PCR), which combines the power of PCR with that of imaging. WBS-PCR relies on 384 well-defined extractions across a mouse whole-body section followed by a single dilution step which renders the lysates compatible with various qPCR-based assays.

Whole-body scanning PCR; a highly sensitive method to study the biodistribution of mRNAs, noncoding RNAs and therapeutic oligonucleotides.

Efficient tissue-specific delivery is a crucial factor in the successful development of therapeutic oligonucleotides. Screening for novel delivery methods with unique tissue-homing properties requires a rapid, sensitive, flexible and unbiased technique able to visualize the in vivo biodistribution of these oligonucleotides. Here, we present whole body scanning PCR, a platform that relies on the local extraction of tissues from a mouse whole body section followed by the conversion of target-specific qPCR signals into an image.