TransMessenger Reagent provides a fast and easy procedure and high transfection efficiencies (see figure "
TransMessenger Reagent with HeLa cells"). Since the amount of RNA is a critical factor for successful transfection, we recommend optimizing the amounts of RNA and TransMessenger Transfection Reagent for every cell type–RNA combination (see figure "
Amount of RNA and TransMessenger Reagent vs. transfection efficiency"). To facilitate this, the reagent is provided with guidelines for optimization together with starting points for optimization in different cell-culture
formats.
TransMessenger Transfection Reagent is highly suited for use in functional cardiac cell studies using neonatal rat ventricular cardiac cells.
Cardiomyocytes from cryopreserved, dissociated neonatal rat ventricular cardiac cells (R-CM-561 [QBMCellScience.com]) display excellent viability, pharmacology, morphology, and connectivity, as well as contractile and electrical activity necessary for use in functional screening (see video
Transfection control: Functional Cardiomyocytes Beating). To evaluate the suitability of using TransMessenger Transfection Reagent in functional cardiac cell studies, cells were transfected with a GFP-expression vector 4 hours after plating, and were fixed 5 days post-transfection. Use of TransMessenger Transfection Reagent resulted in an excellent, 60% survival rate post-transfection with a transfection efficiency of 10–13%. All cardiomyocytes displayed beating post-transfection (sees videos
GPF-Positive Cardiomyocytes Beating Post-Transfection and
Functional Cardiomyocytes Beating Post-Transfection), indicating functional cells. The number of transfected cardiomyocyte verses non-cardiomyocyte cells was evaluated and results demonstrate that a high number of cardiomyocyte and non-cardiomyocyte cells were transfected. Equivalent morphologies between transfected and non-transfected cells were also observed (see figure
Cardiac cell studies).