The fluorometric determination of nucleic acids in pea seeds by use of ethidium bromide complexes.

Abstract A method is described for the determination of RNA and DNA in plant tissues which depends on the effect of complex formation on the fluorescence of ethidium bromide. Previous methods were found to be inapplicable to the analysis of plant material because of the high activity of ribonuclease in tissue extracts. Treatment of extracts with bentonite overcomes this difficulty and also allows measurement of fluorescence without the need to use frontal illumination. The procedure described compares favourably with earlier methods as regards accuracy, sensitivity and simplicity.