Figure 5.

Regular RT-PCR DNA gel images for monthly expression patterns of dehydrin genes in leaf tissues of field-grown R. catawbiense collected in August, September, October, November, January, and February. Total RNA extracted from leaf tissues were used for cDNA synthesis. Regular RT-PCR was conducted by using each dehydrin's primers, while the Universal 18S Internal Standards primers (Ambion) and gene-specific primers of rhododendron ubiquitin-like (RcUbql) gene were used as the mixed primers for the reference genes; the cycle numbers were 32, which was in the exponential phase of the PCR amplification.