Table I.
Technology | Micropipetting | LCM | Protoplasting-Sorting |
---|---|---|---|
Can any cell type be used? | No, only accessible cells by microcapillaries | Yes | No, only cells tagged with fluorescence |
How long does it take to isolate target cells from living plants?a | Less than a day depending on the skills of using microcapillaries | Days due to the required time for fixation, mounting, and sectioning | Half a day for protoplasting and sorting |
Can any plant species be used? | Yes | Yes | No, only species that are transformable |
What is the main equipment required? | High-resolution dissecting microscope | Microdissection instrument for LCM | FACS |
References | Brandt et al. (2002) | Kerk et al. (2003); Nakazono et al. (2003) | Birnbaum et al. (2003); Nawy et al. (2005) |
Once the target cells are isolated, RNA purification and the analysis by microarrays, PCR, or sequencing-based methods take equivalent times for all three techniques.