Studies in heterochromatin DNA: characterization of transcripts synthesized in situ from C-banded preparations.

The transcript of in situ RNA synthesis using Peromyscus eremicus cells, which had been treated with HCl followed by NaOH, proved to be rich in heterochromatin specifying sequences. Such transcript, referred to as heterochromatin RNA, can be characterized biochemically to probe the organization of heterochromatin DNA. It was found that the heterochromatin RNA of P. eremicus contained non-repetitive sequences covalently linked to repetitive sequences.