Wet-lab methods for miRNA analysis

More than 2 decades ago, the discovery of the small regulatory microRNA (miRNA) molecules led to the development of an ever-evolving biomedical research field devoted to the knowledge of these key players of gene expression modulation. MiRNAs have attracted great interest in various research fields due to their important roles in diverse biological processes, both in physiological conditions and in disease. The analysis of miRNA function needs to consider the postulates of systems biology, where the different regulatory players are combined into biological layers to generate a phenotype. MiRNA research has been supported by the important technological advances in the field of molecular biology over the last years. Scientists working in the miRNA field can apply several advanced tools for their detection, quantification, manipulation, and functional analysis. In this chapter, we outline the major experimental strategies for miRNA research and highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the different methods.