The ISOLATE II RNA Micro Kit provides a simple, efficient column-based method for the isolation of total RNA from a wide variety of starting materials, without the need for hazardous reagents such as phenol. By combining the stringency of guanidinium-thiocyanate lysis with the speed and ease-of-use of silica-membrane purification, the ISOLATE II RNA Micro Kit provides a fast method for the purification of high-quality total RNA from single cells, pellets of cultured cells, cryosections, laser-captured or flow sorted cells and small amounts of tissues, for example biopsy materials. For applications that are sensitive to very small amounts of DNA, residual amounts of DNA remaining can be removed using a convenient on-column DNase treatment with the RNase-free DNase I that is supplied with the kit. The ISOLATE II RNA Micro Kit has been designed to deliver optimal performance in RT-qPCR in conjunction with either the SensiFAST cDNA Synthesis Kit and SensiFAST Real-Time PCR Kits, or the SensiFAST One-Step Real-Time RT-PCR Kits. Additionally, the ISOLATE II RNA Micro Kit can be used to purify samples prior to PCR and RT-PCR amplification using the Tetro cDNA Synthesis Kit and any enzyme from the Meridian PCR portfolio, including MyTaq DNA Polymerase.