Figure 1

Identification of small "known" RNAs in the S. meliloti chromosome. A: Migration of 10 μg of S. meliloti total RNA in a 2.5% high-resolution agarose gel (Sigma) stained with ethidium bromide. B: 5 μg of total RNA from S. meliloti strain 1021 was analyzed by Northern blotting hybridization with specific oligonucleotides [see Additional file 8]; the molecular sizes were calculated in nucleotides (nt): > rnpB (372 nt), > tmRNA 3' end (204 nt), > 5S (120 nt), > 4.5S (95 nt), and > tmRNA 5' end (82 nt) [39]. Band > was not hybridized but its size is consistent with it being a tRNA. Exposure times were optimized for each panel and signal intensity does not indicate relative abundance of ncRNAs.